The Checklist Manifesto explains why checklists can save lives, and teaches us how we can implement them correctly.

One day in San Francisco, California, a medical team began an operation on a man for what they believed was a shallow stab wound.

Unfortunately, however, due to errors, the surgeons only noticed the larger, foot-long wound after beginning surgery.

The entire medical staff present forgot to double-check what kind of injury the man had.

We can compare this experience to that of author and surgeon Atul Gawande during a surgery.

Because of the Safe Surgery Saves Lives program, which Gawande helped establish himself, his team used a checklist before starting.

As part of that process, they checked expected blood loss during surgery.

When the team discovered they had no extra blood, they quickly fixed the issue.

During the surgery, Gawande accidentally made an incision in the wrong place.

The extra blood procured because of the checklist saved the patient's life.

Checklists save lives, especially in highly complex fields.

With the enormity of what we know and can do, no individual or team can possibly remember everything.

Implementing a checklist ensures that professionals don't forget the easily missed, yet critical items.

Thus, The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right will teach you the why and how of using checklists.