Perception and Involvement of Operating Room Professionals in the Use of the Surgical Safety Checklist: A Cross-Sectional Study in Cameroon

April 9, 2026 torgjournaladmin 0
Categories : The Operating Room Global , The Operating Room Global Journal , TORGJ , TORGJ Vol 2 Issue 2
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Article DOI: https://doi.org/10.64573/torgj2601002

Authors: Ngaroua1*,  Yaouba Djibrilla2, Altine Fadimatou1, Elvira Awagning Mafouo2,
 Joseph Eloundou Ngah3

1 Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Garoua, Cameroon.
2 Faculty of Science, The University of Ngaoundere, Cameroon.
3 Faculty of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, The University of Yaounde 1, Cameroon.

Cite:

  • APA (7th edition): Ngaroua, Djibrilla, Y., Fadimatou, A., Mafouo, E. A., & Ngah, J. E. (2026, April 9). Perception and involvement of operating room professionals in the use of the surgical safety checklist: A cross-sectional study in Cameroon. The Operating Room Global Journal (TORGJ), 2(1). https://doi.org/10.64573/torgj2601002
  • Harvard: Ngaroua, Djibrilla, Y., Fadimatou, A., Mafouo, E.A. and Ngah, J.E., 2026. Perception and involvement of operating room professionals in the use of the surgical safety checklist: A cross-sectional study in Cameroon. The Operating Room Global Journal (TORGJ), 2(1). Published 9 April. Available at: https://doi.org/10.64573/torgj2601002
  • Vancouver: Ngaroua, Djibrilla Y, Fadimatou A, Mafouo EA, Ngah JE. Perception and involvement of operating room professionals in the use of the surgical safety checklist: A cross-sectional study in Cameroon. The Operating Room Global Journal (TORGJ). 2026 Apr 9;2(1). https://doi.org/10.64573/torgj2601002
  • MLA (9th edition): Ngaroua, et al. “Perception and Involvement of Operating Room Professionals in the Use of the Surgical Safety Checklist: A Cross-Sectional Study in Cameroon.” The Operating Room Global Journal (TORGJ), vol. 2, no. 1, 9 Apr. 2026, https://doi.org/10.64573/torgj2601002
  • Chicago (Author-Date): Ngaroua, Yaouba Djibrilla, Altine Fadimatou, Elvira Awagning Mafouo, and Joseph Eloundou Ngah. 2026. “Perception and Involvement of Operating Room Professionals in the Use of the Surgical Safety Checklist: A Cross-Sectional Study in Cameroon.” The Operating Room Global Journal (TORGJ) 2 (1), April 9. https://doi.org/10.64573/torgj2601002

*Corresponding Author:
Ngaroua
[email protected]
Declaration:
Authors’ Contribution:
Equal contributions.
Conflict of Interest:
No conflict of interests.
Funding:
No funding received by the authors.

Article History:
Received: 23-01-2026
Accepted: 02-04-2026
Available Online: 09-04-2026
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ABSTRACT
Background: The WHO Surgical Safety Checklist (SSC) is a simple, low-cost tool that has been shown to save lives in operating rooms around the world. Yet knowing about a checklist and actually using it well during a stressful surgery are two very different things. In Cameroon, as in many resource-limited settings, the gap between what teams know in theory and what they do in practice remains a real challenge.
Methods: Between March and June 2025, we conducted a cross-sectional study in the operating theatres of two referral hospitals in Yaoundé. Forty-one surgical team members completed a structured questionnaire. In parallel, a trained observer silently watched 25 actual surgical procedures to document exactly how  and how fully  the checklist was being used in real time.
Results: The great majority of participants (85%) could accurately describe the checklist, and every single one agreed that it improves patient safety. Yet nearly half (46%) found it burdensome, and almost three-quarters (73%) struggled to use it during emergencies. When we watched actual surgeries, the picture became clearer: roughly 60% of checklists were executed incompletely or only on paper. Adherence was best during the Sign-In phase (78%), dropped noticeably during Time-Out (52%), and fell furthest during Sign-Out (41%).
Conclusion: Surgical teams in Yaoundé understand the value of the WHO checklist. What is missing is not awareness but consistent, meaningful practice. Closing this gap will require visible leadership from senior clinicians, hands-on team training  especially for emergency scenarios  and an effort to weave the checklist into the natural rhythm of daily surgical work rather than treating it as an added formality.
Keywords: Cameroon; Operating Room; Patient Safety; Quality Improvement; Surgical Safety Checklist.

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