SurgWeek-2: Identifying the Global Burden of Post Operative Complications: an International Prospective Cohort Study Protocol

This study aims to assess and improve the global outcomes following surgery. Every year approximately 313 million operations are performed, with 50 million people experiencing a complication and unfortunately 3.5 million people will die following these operations. This study will assess how outcomes vary following surgery throughout the world and explore system access, quality and efficiency. The secondary aims of this study are to (1) assess the use of antibiotics and the impact of resistant organisms globally, (2) assess who dies after an operation and whether there are factors that were identified that could have prevented the death, (3) assess the assess and outcomes to minimally invasive and robotic surgery, (4) assess the outcomes of the Bellwether procedures (laparotomy, caesarean delivery, open fracture management) as these are conditions used to assess the functioning of a health system. The study will take place for six week in May-June 2026 and will aim to collect data from 100,000 patients across 1000 hospitals in 100 countries to give a global perspective on the above outcome measures. The data will be analysed by hospital income group to understand how resources impact on outcomes. By combining global data on clinical outcomes with information on hospital resources, this study hopes to provide valuable insights into how to improve surgical care across diverse settings, making recommendations that lead to better access to safe, timely and affordable care for surgical problems worldwide.