In general, says Ms. Dyer, overcoming cultural norms that are often
subject to inertia is a challenge. "Change is really hard," she adds. "The
biggest thing with the surgeons is that they aren't exposed like we are,
so they aren't seeing the effects we are. I'm encouraged that the
younger generation of surgeons want to be protected."
Even facility leaders who understand the risks posed by surgical
plume might decide they can't afford to evacuate it, or that it might be
too difficult to integrate evacuation into the OR workflow.
Ms. Dyer says cost should not be an issue for facilities, as the
machines are usually under $2,000 and are often provided free on con-
signment by vendors looking to make money off the accompanying
single-use pens.
In addition to being an influencer within her organization, Ms. Dyer
leverages the digital world to spread the message and connect with
likeminded clinicians and important points of contact. "My biggest
focus is PR and marketing, getting the word out there," says Ms. Dyer.
"I'm adding people on LinkedIn and Facebook who I think will listen,
and it's working. I'm constantly posting about it." In many cases, Ms.
Dyer has turned those virtual connections into face-to-face meetings.
She says accessible data is vital to getting smoke evacuation sys-
tems purchased, installed and used. "You need to know how to sell
it to a surgeon. Eighty percent of surgeons will do it because it's the
right thing to do, but there will always be naysayers. That's why we
need legislation: We're not going to get the voluntary compliance we
want. Even when it's in hospital policy, [some surgeons] are not
doing it, and it's not fair [to surgical team members]."
Legislative action
AORN has long been all-in on surgical smoke evacuation. Years ago, it
launched an educational program focused on the dangers of surgical
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