According to a study that had been conducted in the Netherlands, surgical checklists can save a number of medical errors which ultimately go for medical malpractice claims.

The conclusion has been drawn by the researchers who published the study in the Annals of Surgery. They studied the data from a leading medical insurer of the country and identified that 294 cases of claims for medical malpractice have been arisen from surgeries only in 2004 and 2005.

They compared those surgical checklist known as SURPASS which is currently used in hospitals across the Netherlands.

According to Dr. Eefje de Vries who led the team of the Academic Medical Centre in Amsterdam said, "While the checklist as a whole may seem a little intimidating, the separate parts for each stage of the surgical pathway take little time to complete."

The checklist includes precautions such as making a correct operation schedule, checking availability of equipment, and deciding the body part definitely where the operation to be done.

The team discovered that about 29% of the lawsuits can be avoided through the implementation of this checklist besides making a proper communication between the patients and the hospital staff. He adds that it will possibly prevent "a considerable amount of damage, both physical and financial."