Surgical safety checklist. You know him for his books and the New Yorker piece on McAllen, a narrative rendition of Wennberg's life's work. While Dr. Gawande's writing makes a valuable contribution to educating the public on the healthcare system's (dys)function and economics--and earned him a MacArthur award--we list him for his quest to reduce error rates in surgical ORs. A seemingly simple mission, when compared with trying to bring lay people up to speed on the factors and consequences of "services distribution and utilization variations...and outcomes," this does not mean it is easy. When we called, Dr. Gawande was in the Middle East, just one more leg of a global trek to promote his WHO surgical safety checklist to as many hospitals and clinics as he can. Like Wasson's innovation, Gawande's is less about new matter than it is about new method. Error comes from inconsistency, as he wrote, "a simple step forgotten" can cause death. So the surgeon and staff at HSPH produced a rules-set for routine. Its particular purpose aside, this is a model innovation for many reasons: it is discrete, requiring no supporting technology and has no shelf life (washing your hands will always be safer); it is easy to use; easy to replicate; and free. Distribution = Xerox. Would that all change in healthcare were so straightforward.