The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right

Atul Gawande is the author and narrator of The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right, and his development of an effective checklist is what drives it. Gawande is a practicing general and endocrine surgeon who specializes in cancer surgeries. He was also the leader of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Safe Surgery Saves Lives initiative, some of which he chronicles in the book.

Though the book is close to home and thesis-driven, and Gawande argues for implementation of checklists in operating rooms as a practicing surgeon, he does so realistically. He acknowledges limitations, addresses skepticism, and at times, includes himself in those he criticizes. His tone is emphatic at times, but he balances this by relying on data to justify his claims. Gawande closes the book with an anecdote in which he recounts a nearly disastrous mistake he made while performing a surgery. The anecdote supports his main argument, showing how a checklist created a collaborative operating room that helped save a patient. It also shows his humility and willingness to learn from mistakes. Gawande’s expertise does not mean he is above error.

As he researches how to design the most efficient checklist, Gawande demonstrates that he is a learner first, despite being an expert in the medical field.