UNICC and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) have partnered to develop a mobile application to facilitate the use of the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist. The app was launched Tuesday 17 September 2019, during the celebration of the first World Patient Safety Day.

Mobile apps with innovative technology like voice recognition can make all the difference in access and availability of information to people around the globe.

Sameer Chauhan, Director, UNICC

World Patient Safety Day was established this year to raise global awareness on accessible, safe, timely and affordable surgical care, an issue that is at the heart of universal health coverage and is key to achieving any health related objective outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Energy, telecommunications, manufacturing and service industries have shown that innovative digital solutions can help increase safety in the medical field. The WHO Surgical Safety Checklist was developed to reduce errors and adverse events, improve teamwork and communication in surgery.

The new mobile application aims to promote the use of WHO’s Checklist by making it even easier to follow through a voice recognition system. As a result, UNICC, WHO and UNITAR expect the morbidity and mortality rates to keep decreasing in patients during and after surgery.

UNICC’s Director, Sameer Chauhan, explained the crucial link between technology and patient safety and how possible technological tools can contribute to surgical care.

The launch event, organized by WHO and UNITAR in the Palais des Nations in Geneva was preceded by a roundtable with experts from WHO global surgery staff and health care specialists from around the world who met to discuss the need for safe surgery.

The WHO Surgical Safety Checklist app is already available at Google Play.

See also the related UNICC story on WHO’s 5 Moments of Medication Safety App.