Sterile Technique
This is the cornerstone of our surgical practice. The use of specific actions and activities to prevent contamination and maintain sterility.
What is sterile technique?
Scrubbed team members should not wear this on their hands and wrists as it prevents effective cleaning.
What is jewelry?
This perioperative zone is open to employees in street clothes and can include hallways and the staff lounge.
What is the unrestricted zone/area?
These must not be worn in any non-Hartford Healthcare public place (i.e., coffee shops, the grocery store, restaurants, car dealerships) by any health care personnel.
What is hospital-laundered surgical scrubs?
This team member is responsible for bringing the patient back to the Operating Room and starting the preoperative antibiotic. They work in close collaboration with the OR Nurse to coordinate care for the patient.
Who is the CRNA or nurse anesthetist?
When hands are visibly soiled this method of hand hygiene is preferred.
What is soap and water?
When scrubbed team members move in and around the sterile field, they should move this way to prevent contamination.
What is moving back-to-back or face to face when changing positions?
This item is needed to cover one's hair or head prior to entering the semi-restricted areas (i.e. OR hallways, scrub sink areas, sterile processing department).
What is a head covering?
What is a bouffant or surgical cap?
This perioperative zone includes the sterile cores, operating rooms and requires a surgical mask, hospital-laundered scrubs, and PPE such as bouffant caps and beard covers.
What is the restricted zone/area?
Studies have shown that perioperative nurses have twice the incidence of many respiratory problems compared to the general population*. In response to this fact, a CT law went into effect on January 1, 2024 that required all hospitals and surgery centers to have an evacuation policy related to what operating room byproduct?
What is evacuation of surgical smoke?
This team member is responsible for setting up and maintaining the sterile field throughout the procedure.
Who is the Surgical Technologist?
How many air exchanges per hour take place in the OR?
What is 20 per hour (4 from outside air)?
Before sterilization, this item is placed on both the outside and inside of the packaging to show that parameters for sterility have been met.
What is a chemical indicator?
Before entering an operating room suite, a person must don this item and refrain from wearing it dangling from the neck.
What is a surgical mask?
This work area is where specimens are taken and prepared for testing both intraoperatively and postoperatively.
What is Pathology lab?
This item is required to be worn while performing the surgical prep and must be snapped closed with cuffs to the wrists to contain shedding skin cells from bare arms.
What is a scrub jacket?
This team member is responsible for directing the team and performing the surgery according to the needs of the patient. They are the primary decision maker regarding surgical technique, instruments, suture, dressings, and/or drains.
Who is the Surgeon?
These are used to establish the sterile field and to provide a barrier that minimizes the passage of microorganisms from unsterile to sterile areas and reduces the risk of infection for patients.
What are sterile drapes?
Maintaining sterile technique is critical for preventing this.
What are Surgical Site Infections (SSIs)?
Perioperative team members should don these prior to entering the OR suite when gross contamination can be anticipated.
What is shoe coverings or shoe booties?
These are the professionals that play a critical role in preventing infection by sterilizing, cleaning, processing, assembling, storing, and distributing surgical supplies.
Who are the sterile processing professionals?
When this occurs, corrective action should be taken immediately unless the patient’s safety is at risk. If corrective action cannot be corrected immediately, it should be taken as soon as it is safe for the patient.
What is break in sterile technique?
This team member is responsible for assisting the surgeon throughout the procedure by holding retractors, cutting suture, stapling and superficial skin closures. They see surgical patients in the clinic after surgery and round on them for the duration of the hospital stay.
Who is the PA-C, Nurse Practitioner, APRN, or Surgical Resident?
The purpose of this protocol developed by the Joint Commission, is to provide guidance for the prevention of wrong site, wrong procedure, and wrong person surgery.
What is Universal Protocol?
This occurs when moisture soaks through drapes, gowns, and packages and renders the item contaminated.
What is strikethrough?
This item is worn to protect team members from splashes of blood and body fluids in the eyes.
What is eye protection or face shield?
This perioperative zone requires hospital laundered scrubs, a bouffant, and shoe covers (as needed).
What are the semi-restricted areas?
This should be prepared as close as possible to the time of use and should not be moved from the location it will be used.
What is the sterile field?
This team member is a non-scrubbed member of the surgical team whose primary responsibility is to be the patient’s advocate.
Who is the Circulating Nurse?
This technique, also known as clean closure technique, reduces the risk of SSIs in colorectal procedures and may be used during procedures involving resection of metastatic tumors.
What is isolation technique?