Empowering Nurse Executives to Advocate for Surgical Smoke–Free Operating Rooms

Evacuating surgical smoke in the operating room protects patients and perioperative teams from the hazards associated with inhaling surgical smoke. States have passed bills mandating health care facilities and ambulatory surgery centers adopt policies to evacuate surgical smoke. We use a 5-step process for identifying options to reduce exposure to the harmful toxins found in surgical smoke and recommend executive nurse leaders collaborate with states and professional organizations to pursue smoke evacuation legislation. This strategy empowers executive nurse leaders and perioperative teams to work with professional organizations and state legislators to reduce exposure to the harmful health hazards associated from surgical smoke.