Use of statistical process control in quality improvement projects in abdominal surgery: a PRISMA systematic review.

Background: The use of quality improvement methodology has increased in recent years due to a perceived benefit in effectively reducing morbidity, mortality and length of stay. Statistical process control (SPC) is an important tool to evaluate these actions, but its use has been limited in abdominal surgery. Previous systematic reviews have examined the use of SPC in healthcare, but relatively few surgery-related articles were found at that time.