Poor team work is killing patients

Poor team work and communication are contributing to the lack of improvement in the number of patients in England and Wales who die within three days of a medical intervention. The warning comes from the 2002 report of an independent body the National Confidential Enquiry into Perioperative Deaths, which was published this week.

The report reviewed a sample of deaths occurring within three days of an intervention between 1 April 2000 and 31 March 2001, tracking …