The Checklist Manifesto

How to Get Things Right

By: Atul Gawande

Narrated by: John Bedford Lloyd

Length: 6 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

The New York Times best-selling author of Being Mortal and Complications reveals the surprising power of the ordinary checklist.

We live in a world of great and increasing complexity, where even the most expert professionals struggle to master the tasks they face. Longer training, ever more advanced technologies - neither seems to prevent grievous errors. But in a hopeful turn, acclaimed surgeon and writer Atul Gawande finds a remedy in the humblest and simplest of techniques: the checklist. First introduced decades ago by the US Air Force, checklists have enabled pilots to fly aircraft of mind-boggling sophistication. Now innovative checklists are being adopted in hospitals around the world, helping doctors and nurses respond to everything from flu epidemics to avalanches. Even in the immensely complex world of surgery, a simple 90-second variant has cut the rate of fatalities by more than a third.

In riveting stories, Gawande takes us from Austria, where an emergency checklist saved a drowning victim who had spent half an hour underwater, to Michigan, where a cleanliness checklist in intensive care units virtually eliminated a type of deadly hospital infection. He explains how checklists actually work to prompt striking and immediate improvements. And he follows the checklist revolution into fields well beyond medicine, from homeland security to investment banking, skyscraper construction, and businesses of all kinds.

An intellectual adventure in which lives are lost and saved and one simple idea makes a tremendous difference, The Checklist Manifesto is essential listening for anyone working to get things right.

©2009 Atul Gawande (P)2009 Macmillan Audio

Great book and easy listen.

I was expecting a step-by-step guide for making checklists but got great stories and a 30,000 foot view of what I should include in my checklist.

The last minute of chapter 8

Love it! Been trying to work with my team on creating better checklists and protocols. Tons of pushback. This book is just what is needed to help deepen understanding. 

Great Book

This was a really good read for me and I learned a lot from it.

Excellent work!

This is a terrific read for Safety professionals. I purchased a hard copy just to take notes.

Checklists produce efficiency & high performance

The author’s voice was great. This makes a big difference in make the book more enjoyable. Moreover, he dives right into making the topic interesting. Key takeaway, checklist can turn anyone into a highly efficient person, performing at their very best. Super interesting book and a fast paced read/listen.

Checklists in use

I am in a profession that requires checklists. I loved learning how other professions use them and how to get the most out of a checklist

Collection of stories of checklist usage

The book is a collection of stories about checklists used in different industries and how they made a difference from saving lives to increasing profits. Since the author is a doctor, most of the stories are about healthcare. Contrary to the subtitle, the book does not provide guidance on how to create a checklist. From the stories, it's apparent that the checklist should be simple so people will use it; it should contain a few vital steps to address likely problems and high-risk concerns. For example the checklist for surgeries, the team introduce themselves (so people feel comfortable speaking up if they notice a mistake), they verify they have completed the steps for preventing infection (common complication), they say what procedure will be performed (sometimes the wrong operation has been performed), and they say what is needed if the worst-case scenario occurs (e.g., how many units of blood need to be on standby). A good checklist requires using it in the field and refining it. Taking measurements of "before" and "after" with the checklist can persuade some skeptics to use the checklists (like a 40% reduction in infection rate).

Awesome

My brother said this book was amazing and it lived up to the hype. Narrated well, the story shows the complexity of so many fields and gives hope to us humans that trying harder is not necessarily the answer to fallibility.

Nothing Surprising

Personally, I don’t think it to be a surprise that humans are fallible and inconsistent in our judgments. So, it is nothing new that a simple standardized procedure such as a checklist would help us perform more consistently. The stories and examples in the book are very emotionally charged. While I have deep empathy for those involved I didn’t gain much insight into the creation, use, or development of checklists. A person with sufficient training in system modeling, process control, etc can read between the lines and conceptualize uses beyond the ones mentioned in the text. If you are looking for a systematic method for creating good checklists this is not the book for you. Instead I encourage you to track and keep record of your failings, find common root causes and make a check for that on your list.

Great Book!

I was asked to read this book by my job and did not think I would enjoy it. I was wrong. It was amazing and made me review the way we work at my job and in my business.