AORN's Guidelines for Perioperative Practice are the gold-standard in evidence-based recommendations to deliver safe perioperative patient care and achieve workplace safety. Developed by an interdisciplinary panel of clinical experts and the only evidence-based guidelines for perioperative teams approved by the Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI) Guidelines Trust, they will help decrease surgical errors, provide quality measurements, and keep your team members safer. 2026 New Guideline:

Implementation of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS)

The AORN 2026 Guidelines for Perioperative Practice feature critical updates across 36 guidelines, focusing on enhanced patient and staff safety with new evidence, especially concerning Transmission-Based Precautions, updated protocols for Instrument Cleaning (including PPE for decontamination), improved Pneumatic Tourniquet Safety, detailed guidance for Autologous Tissue Management, and new recommendations for Local Anesthesia Safety. Key themes involve strengthening reprocessing safety, incorporating lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, and optimizing patient recovery, offering evidence-based frameworks for current perioperative care. 

Key Areas with Updates:

• Instrument Cleaning: New guidelines detail enhanced PPE (e.g., fluid-resistant gowns with extended cuffs), borescope use, cleaning verification, and managing lumened instruments, with attention to cooling devices for decontamination staff.
• Transmission-Based Precautions: Extensive updates based on COVID-19 research, including frameworks for risk assessment of infective particles and applying appropriate precautions.
• Pneumatic Tourniquet Safety: Revised recommendations to reduce complications from improper use, selection, or monitoring.
• Autologous Tissue Management: Clearer steps to preserve tissue viability and reduce infection risks.
• Care of Patients Receiving Local-Only Anesthesia: New guidance addressing local anesthetic systemic toxicity (LAST) and preparedness.