Earlier this week, Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo signed into law legislation that will require the elimination of surgical smoke by use of smoke evacuation systems in Rhode Island operating rooms. As the first state to address surgical smoke evacuation by law in the United States, Rhode Island has set a national precedent in the protection and safety of perioperative nurses and their colleagues on the surgical team.

The Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN), advocates for surgical nurses’ workplace safety, spearheaded the law’s passage in collaboration with the Rhode Island State Nurses Association and provided testimony on the dangers of surgical smoke, a by-product of use of energy-generating devices.

“There are no specific standards for laser and electrosurgery plume hazards,” said Danielle Glover, manager of AORN government affairs. “Instead, the safety policies have been left to the facilities and, nationwide, too few have taken action to protect their healthcare workers. We hope Rhode Island’s proactive legislation will lead other states to follow suit.”

Donna Policastro, executive director of Rhode Island State Nurses expressed her appreciation to Rep. Joseph McNamara and Sen. Cynthia Coyne for their support of nurses and their work to pass legislation that insures a safe work environment. “Rhode Island State Nurses Association is proud to lead the way in creating a "culture of safety" for our nurses and all surgical team members in our state.”

According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), each year “an estimated 500,000 workers, including surgeons, nurses, anesthesiologists, and surgical technologists, are exposed to laser or electrosurgical smoke.” This smoke, also known as plume, includes carbon monoxide, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and a variety of trace toxic gases. Prolonged exposure can lead to serious and life-threatening respiratory diseases.

Operating Room

 operating room page provides news articles and videos on the intersection between surgery and infection prevention. The operating room is a prime breeding ground for harmful pathogens to spread, resulting in surgical site infections. The role of the infection preventionist, together with the perioperative nursing staff, is to craft policies and processes to cut down on these infections and ensure patient safety during surgical procedures. 

Rhode Island’s Surgical Nurses Will Soon Be Smoke-free in Their Operating Rooms