Strong for Surgery

Strong for Surgery is a public health campaign and quality improvement (QI) initiative launched in Washington State in 2012. Strong for Surgery works with participating hospitals and clinics to integrate checklists into the pre-operative phase of clinical practice for elective surgeries. The checklists are used to screen patients for potential risk factors that can lead to surgical complications, in order to provide appropriate interventions to ensure better surgical outcomes. The checklists target four areas which are known to be highly-influential determinants of surgical outcomes: Nutrition, Glycemic Control, Medication Management, and Smoking Cessation. Strong for Surgery was developed by the Comparative Effectiveness Research Translation Network (CERTAIN) and informed by data from the Surgical Care and Outcomes Assessment Program.