Objective To explore the application effect of healthcare failure mode and effect analysis (HFMEA) in the Time-out procedure of surgical safety verification, and provide a reference for improving the quality of operating room nursing. Methods A total of 11,204 surgeries performed from August to October 2023 were assigned to the control group, where routine surgical safety verification was adopted during the Time-out procedure. Another 11,543 surgeries performed from May to July 2024 were assigned to the observation group,in which an HFMEA team was established, failure modes in the operating-room time-out verification process identified, root causes analyzed, and action plans formulated and implemented. The intervention effects were compared between the two groups. Results The observation group showed significantly better performance than the control group in terms of standardized implementation rate of time-out, accurate statement rate of surgical and anesthetic risks, accurate filling rate of safety checklists, and filing rate of safety checklists (P<0.05). Conclusion The application of HFMEA to standardize the Time-out phase of surgical safety verification can effectively enhance the standardization of the Time-out verification procedure and ensure the safety of surgical patients.