The case for compulsory surgical smoke evacuation systems in the operating theatre

Perioperative staff are frequently exposed to surgical smoke or plume created by using heat-generating devices like diathermy and lasers. This is a concern due to mounting evidence that this exposure can be harmful with no safe level of exposure yet identified. First, I briefly summarise the problem...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inClinical ethics Vol. 17; no. 2; pp. 130 - 135
Main Author Rodger, Daniel
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London, England SAGE Publications 01.06.2022
Subjects
autonomy
justice
surgical plume
harm
Surgical smoke
nonmaleficence
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ISSN1477-7509
1758-101X
DOI10.1177/14777509211063589

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Summary:Perioperative staff are frequently exposed to surgical smoke or plume created by using heat-generating devices like diathermy and lasers. This is a concern due to mounting evidence that this exposure can be harmful with no safe level of exposure yet identified. First, I briefly summarise the problem posed by surgical smoke exposure and highlight that many healthcare organisations are not sufficiently satisfying their legal and ethical responsibilities to protect their staff from potential harm. Second, I explore the ethical case for compulsory smoke evacuation systems using the principlist framework and its four ethical principles – autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice. I then consider some objections and argue that surgical smoke evacuation systems – when indicated – should be made compulsory.
ISSN:1477-7509
1758-101X
DOI:10.1177/14777509211063589