Patient Safety Awareness Week 2023
March 12-18, 2023 is recognized as Patient Safety Awareness Week, encouraging everyone to learn more about healthcare safety. At GAHHS, we focus on patient safety EVERY DAY to provide the safest possible environment of care for our patients and those who care for them because Gibson Gets It!
One shining example of the dedication our organization has to patient safety is our GAHHS Surgery Team, shown below, proudly displaying the AORN-Go Clear Award! AORN is the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses(AORN). GAHHS has been recognized and awarded the Gold Level for surgical smoke-free achievements.
Every. Day. We Focus on Patient Safety!
More about AORN and the GAHHS National Recognition:
Gibson Area Hospital and Health Services Earns National Recognition for Safety in Surgery
Gibson Area Hospital and Health Services (GAHHS) is proud to announce that it has earned the Go Clear Award™ for its achievement in eliminating hazardous smoke from its surgical procedures. The Go Clear Award is presented by the Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses (AORN) to recognize healthcare facilities that have committed to providing increased surgical patient and healthcare worker safety by implementing practices that eliminate smoke caused by the use of lasers and electro-surgery devices during surgery. GAHHS earned its award by undergoing comprehensive surgical smoke education and testing and for providing the medical devices and resources necessary to evacuate surgical smoke during all smoke-generating procedures.
Surgical smoke is the unwanted by-product of energy-generating devices that are used in 90 percent of all surgeries. Its contents include toxic chemicals such as benzene, formaldehyde, hydrogen cyanide, carbon monoxide, viruses, bacteria, blood, and cancer cells. Inhalation and absorption of surgical smoke pose serious health risks to patients and surgical staff. Studies compare the inhalation of smoke from vaporized human tissue to the smoke created by cigarettes; the average daily impact of surgical smoke on the surgical team is equivalent to inhaling 27-30 unfiltered cigarettes. Today, it is estimated only 50% of healthcare workers across the U.S. understand the hazards of smoke exposure.
“Total evacuation needs to become the standard for all procedures that generate surgical smoke,” said Linda Groah, MSN, RN, CNOR, NEA-BC, FAAN, CEO/Executive Director of AORN. “With this award, GAHHS is demonstrating its deep commitment to the health and safety of its staff and community.”
AORN represents the interests of more than 160,000 perioperative nurses by providing nursing education, standards, and practice resources—including the peer-reviewed, monthly publication AORN Journal—to enable optimal outcomes for patients undergoing operative and other invasive procedures. AORN’s 40,000 registered nurse members manage, teach, and practice perioperative nursing, are enrolled in nursing education, or are engaged in perioperative research.
