S T E R IL E

TECH N IQ U E S
L E OR IT IS NOT!
R : I T’S E ITHER STERI
REMEMBE
THE BASICS
 GREEN = STERILE

RED = CONTAMINATED
SCRUBBED PERSONNEL
 Scrubbed persons should function
within a sterile field.
 Before putting on gloves (and gown, if
needed) surgical hand sepsis should be
performed.
 Surgical hand antisepsis decreases
microbial counts on the skin and
decreases transfer of microorganisms
 ENSURING STERILITY
Sterile goods are stored in clean, dry
areas.
Sterile items are handled with clean,
dry hands.
Sterile packages are laid on dry
surfaces. If a sterile package becomes
damp or wet, it is considered nonsterile
and therefore, cannot be used.
 STERILE PACKAGING
The integrity of a sterile package or
sterile drape is destroyed by perforation,
puncture, or strike through
Strike-through is the soaking of moisture
through nonsterile layers to sterile layers
or vice versa. Package expiration date for
sterility must be checked just prior to
opening it
 FIELD
 It is not easy to define the boundaries between sterile and nonsterile
areas; therefore, the following precautions should be taken:

DEFINING THE STERILE

 In opening sterile packages, a margin of safety is always maintained.
 The LAST flap is pulled TOWARD the person opening the package,
away from the non-sterile hand.
 Flaps on peel-open packages should be pulled back, not torn, to
expose sterile contents: Contents should be flipped or lifted
upwards, and not permitted to slide over the edges.
 Only the interior and surface level of the cover are considered
sterile.
SCRUBBED VS. UNSCRUBBED TEAM MEMBERS

Supplies for scrubbed personnel: obtain sterile items

by opening them onto the sterile field before donning
sterile gloves or with assistance from a unscrubbed
team member.
Team members who are not scrubbed should face the
sterile field on approach, not walk between two sterile
fields, and maintain a safety margin of at least six
inches.
Team Members
• Unscrubbed people NEVER reach over a sterile
field to transfer sterile items.
• When pouring solutions into a sterile basin, the
assistant holds only the lip of the bottle over the
basin, to avoid reaching over a sterile area.
• The scrubbed person sets cups or basins, to be
filled, at the edge of the sterile table. The
assistant stands near this edge of the table to
fill them.
POURING SOLUTIONS
¢After opening a bottle of sterile
solution, the contents
must be used or discarded.

¢The edge of the bottle is considered

contaminated after the contents have
been poured; therefore the sterility of
the contents cannot be ensured if the
cap is replaced.
RULES FOR PASSING
Unscrubbed personnel
face and observe a
sterile area when passing
it to ensure they do not
touch it.
 TABLES
Only the top of a sterile, draped table is considered
sterile.
The edges and sides of the drape extending below
the table level are considered unsterile.
Anything that drops below the level of the table
surface is considered unsterile and must be
discarded.
 RECOMMENDED PRACTICES FOR
MAINTAINING A STERILE FIELD
•A sterile field should be maintained & monitored constantly
•Scrubbed persons should function within a sterile field.
•Sterile drapes should be used to establish a sterile field.
•Items should be used within the sterile field should be
sterile.
•All items introduced to a sterile field should be opened,
dispensed, and transferred by methods
that maintain sterility & integrity