When inspectors swoop in, hospital staff save more lives

Enlarge (credit: Getty | Caiaimage/Robert Daly)

Even the best and brightest employees will slack a bit when the boss isn’t looking—we’re not machines, after all. (Editor's note: get back to work!) Perhaps a project doesn’t move along as briskly as it could, or a protocol isn’t followed precisely. In the working world, minor mediocrity now and then may not be a big deal—it’s not like it's life or death, right?

But what if you’re a healthcare provider?

According to a new study in JAMA Internal Medicine, doctors and nurses are, sadly, just like the rest of us. When inspectors roll into town, those healthcare providers straighten up and save more lives. The effect is modest overall, researchers found, but it could make a difference of thousands of lives saved each year.