At the upcoming 2026 AORN Global Surgical Conference & Expo (AORN26), scheduled for April 11-14 in New Orleans, Louisiana, Erica Smith, DrPH, MBA is set to offer indispensable insights to perioperative teams. Smith’s session titled, “From Guidelines to Practice: Writing Policies That Drive Infection Prevention Compliance and Quality,” is aimed at transitioning from theoretical guidelines to actionable infection prevention protocols. The principal challenge Smith addresses isn’t a dearth of guidelines but the Herculean task of converting these into workable policies that can thrive in real-world perioperative settings.
Smith, who is currently serving as the national accounts manager for non acute care at PDI, draws from her vast clinical experience spanning surgery centers, oncology, and dialysis. The core of her session relies on a straightforward framework for policy development and maintenance. Smith advocates for partitioning protocols into distinct levels to allow for pinpointed alterations, instead of the rewriting of the whole document.
In addition, Smith’s interactive session employs a workshop-style design, emphasizing collaborative thinking and peer-to-peer learning to develop practical and effective policies. It assists attendees in understanding the processes involved in translating guidelines into policy language and highlights the lack of a one-size-fits-all solution.
Furthermore, Smith stresses on the importance of striking a balance between complexity and simplicity while communicating about infection prevention. Over-studied or underemphasized protocols can lead to confusion, non-adherence, or gaps in infection prevention practices. Smith’s insights into infection prevention stress the importance of basic practices such as proper hand hygiene and disinfection. Smith also acknowledges the strains on perioperative teams and offers her tools as supportive aids to improve compliance and reduce stress.
The session offers IPs a practical approach to one of the most challenging tasks in the field – converting guidelines into actionable policies. By balancing evidence, workflow, resources, and human behavior, Smith manages to provide a roadmap for developing policies that are both compliant and utilizable as infection prevention continues to evolve. Stay tuned for more coverage on AORN26 in Infection Control Today.