Shriners Children’s Portland wins AORN GO CLEAR Award for surgical safety

Shriners Children’s Portland earned the AORN GO CLEAR Award on Oct. 13, 2026, becoming a Center of Excellence in Surgical Safety for its work to create smoke-free pediatric operating rooms. The designation highlights the hospital’s smoke evacuation policies, staff training and monitoring aimed at protecting young patients and surgical teams.

Why it matters: - Surgical smoke from laser and electrosurgical procedures can create avoidable hazards in operating rooms. - The GO CLEAR designation signals that Shriners Children’s Portland has met standards tied to smoke-free surgical environments for pediatric care. - The award matters for both patient safety and staff safety in a setting serving children with complex medical needs.

What happened: - Shriners Children’s Portland earned the GO CLEAR Award from the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) on Oct. 13, 2026. - The recognition names Shriners Children’s Portland a Center of Excellence in Surgical Safety. - The hospital became the second facility in the Shriners system to receive the designation. - Shriners Children’s Portland is the only hospital on Marquam Hill to earn the award.

The details: - AORN’s Surgical Smoke-Free Recognition Program honors facilities that have completed requirements for eliminating surgical smoke. - Surgical smoke is a potentially hazardous byproduct of laser and electrosurgical procedures. - Shriners Children’s Portland implemented approved smoke evacuation systems across pediatric operating rooms and procedural areas. - The hospital developed pediatric-specific formal policies and protocols for surgical smoke management. - Shriners Children’s Portland provided staff education and training on surgical smoke hazards and evacuation procedures. - The hospital also put in place ongoing compliance monitoring and quality assurance measures. - Julie Konze, Nurse Manager, said the award reflects collaboration across pediatric surgeons, perioperative nurses, anesthesia providers and support staff. - Konze said the hospital is working to create a safer, healthier environment for young patients. - The GO CLEAR program was created through a partnership between AORN and Medtronic via the AORN Foundation. - More than 800 surgical teams nationwide have adopted the program.

Between the lines: - The award gives Shriners Children’s Portland a visible benchmark for infection-control and operating-room safety work, even though the recognition is specifically focused on smoke evacuation. - The pediatric-specific policies suggest the hospital tailored the program to the needs of children rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach. - The system-level distinction may help position Shriners Children’s Portland as an internal model for other Shriners facilities.

What's next: - Shriners Children’s Portland is expected to maintain compliance monitoring and quality assurance to keep the designation. - The hospital will likely continue emphasizing surgical safety as part of its pediatric specialty care mission. - AORN’s broader smoke-free recognition effort is likely to keep expanding as more surgical teams seek the designation.

The bottom line: - Shriners Children’s Portland now has a national safety credential that underscores its push to reduce surgical smoke risks in pediatric care.