like. This was another example of our organic approach: making peo-
ple feel empowered to choose their own machines. After the fair,
everyone filled out surveys so we could collect and analyze feedback.
We trialed 3 products at all 6 of our hospitals for 6 weeks, rotating
them in and out of different ORs. Then we assembled our champi-
ons and, happily, we agreed unanimously on the best product. The
whole process took just 8 months; our vendor said we had the high-
est and quickest implementation rate in the U.S.
Persistence pays off
Implementing smoke evacuation requires passion and time. It's not
easy, but don't take no for an answer. The biggest thing is believing
your facility wants to do right by you, that you're important, that your
health is important. Educate everyone in your facility about the dan-
gers of surgical smoke until you find someone as passionate as you
are about evacuating it. Sometimes all it takes is one person to be on
your side, and it snowballs from there.
Keep trying, no matter how long it takes. That's what I did, and after
finally succeeding, it's become my mission to spread the word about
surgical smoke safety. If you'd like to talk with me about how to get
smoke evacuation in place at your facility, email me! I'll be thrilled to
discuss it with you.
OSM
Ms. Dyer (andreamdyer7@gmail.com) is perioperative clinical nurse edu-
cator and surgical smoke safety champion at Nemours Children's Hospital in
Orlando, Fla. Her smoke evacuation success occurred at Legacy Health
System in Portland, Ore., where she was the perioperative nursing education
and practice specialist.
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