This handbook provides guidelines for infection control in various surgical settings. It specifically addresses the needs of nurses practicing in perioperative, PACU, ambulatory surgery, endoscopy, or other surgical settings who need access to current guidelines to meet OSHA and JCAHO requirements. It contains procedure guidelines for preparation of the patient, surgical equipment, personnel, and surgical practices. Each procedure contains a brief description, followed by rationales for the principles outlined in the procedure. Each rationale is referenced to AORN standards, CDC guidelines, and other resources.
PREOPERATIVE PREPARATION OF PATIENT · Preoperative Patient Preparation · SURGICAL ENVIRONMENTS AND TRAFFIC · Floors, Walls, and Ceilings · Temperature and Humidity · Airborne Contamination, Ventilation Systems, and Laminar Airflow · Ultraviolet (UV) Irradiation/Lights · Contaminated or Dirty Procedures · Tacky (Sticky) Mats · Construction and Renovation · Traffic Patterns · Visitors · Alternative Surgical Settings · PREPARATION OF PERSONNEL · Employee Health · Surgical Attire · Hand Washing · Surgical Scubbing · Gowning · Gloving · SURGICAL PRACTICES · Sterile Techniques and Practices · Cleaning and Decontamination of Surgical Instruments · Disinfection · Sterilization · Flash Sterilization · Monitoring of Sterilization Processes · Event-Related Sterility, Expiration Dating, and Storage of Sterile Items · Parametric Release · Reuse/Reprocessing of Single-Use Devices · Cleaning Up of Rooms · Opening and Setting Up Rooms · Preparing the Patient's Skin · Draping · Dressings and Drains · Care of Specimins · Waste Management · SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS · Standard Precautions · Bloodborn Pathogens and Safety Issues · Antibiotic-Resistant Organisms · Tuberculosis · Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease