2nd Annual Safety in Spine Surgery Month
Chairman: Michael Vitale, MD
Co-Chairmen: John Flynn, MD; Roger Härtl, MD; Larry Lenke, MD; Rajiv Sethi, MD
Safety in Spine Surgery: First Do No Harm—Webinar Series
- April 14, 2022 | 7:00–9:00 pm Eastern | CME-accredited
Best Practice Guidelines and Checklists to Make Your OR Safer
View the CME accreditation document here
- April 21, 2022 | 7:00–9:00 pm Eastern | Non-CME
Robotics and Navigation in Spine Surgery: Views Across Generations
Learn More & Get Involved
Contribute your expertise and learn more to enhance safety in spine surgery!
- Attend a Live Webinar in April
- Follow Us on Social Media and Be a Part of the Conversation
- Get Your Company Involved
Call for Abstracts
Best New Methodologies and Techniques to Enhance Safety in Spine Surgery
- Abstract submission closed on Feb. 18.
- Winners notified by March 7.
- Award: 10 Outstanding Papers receive $1,000 and present during a live webinar in April.
Get Involved
If your company or organization would like to be part of the solution, please contact us. It is the belief of the program directors that all major healthcare stakeholders are obligated to invest their expertise and funds to dramatically enhance patient safety.
Circulate this website to your colleagues and invite them to participate by submitting abstracts, attending webinars, and engaging with us on social media.
About Safety in Spine Surgery Month
Preventable medical errors claim the lives of more than 400,000 people annually.1
Medical error deaths alone cost the US close to $1 trillion annually.2
1 Journal of Patient Safety: Sept. 2013 Vol. 9 – Issue 3 p 122-128; A new evidence-based estimate of patient harms associated with hospital care; JT James, PhD 2 J Health Care Finance. 2012 Fall;39(1):39-50; The economics of health care quality and medical errors; Andel C, et al

Statistics showing high numbers of medical and surgical errors have recently been highlighted by US government agencies, medical societies, patient groups, and throughout the media. These errors cause unnecessary human suffering, damage the reputation of the medical community, and increase costs.
There is immense need to dramatically raise awareness of key steps and Best Practice Guidelines that are essential to maximize safety in spine surgery worldwide. It is not a secondary topic to be referred to occasionally. It is a topic that needs to be central to all activities of surgeons, healthcare providers, medical device companies, hospital executives, and more. It is not an optional extra but is a fundamental responsibility for all of us in the field.
While there is, of course, a deep commitment to maximizing safety in spine surgery among all stakeholders in the field, there is more that can be done. The 2nd Annual Safety in Spine Surgery Month will be part of the solution. The Month will combine international advertising and publicity, webinars, video content, and Best Paper Awards to push the message of safety in spine surgery forward.
The Month will be managed and driven by the Safety in Spine Surgery Project (S3P), and chaired by Michael Vitale, MD.