Adverse events that threaten patient safety are an important concern in high risk areas such as surgery. Analyses of incidents leading to patient mortality suggest that failures in non-technical skills are often among the causal factors for the event. Specifically failures in communication, leadership and situation awareness have all been implicated in adverse events during surgical procedures. Researchers suggest that these incidents highlight the need for non-technical skills training for surgeons, as technical competence is not enough to avoid to prevent errors during surgery.

The APHF team, led by Prof Flin, conducted a series of studies to evaluate surgeon non-technical skills. The findings of that research led to the development, and evaluation of NOTSS, the non-technical skills behavioural rating system for surgeons. Training in NOTSS is offered by the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

To find out more about this research you can click on the links below. If you wish to discuss the research further, or would like a copy of the NOTSS handbook please contact Prof Rhona Flin.