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The following recommended practices were developed by the AORN Recommended Practices Committee and have been approved by the AORN Board of Directors. They were presented as proposed recommended practices for comments by members and others. They are effective January 1, 2005.
These recommended practices are intended as achievable recommendations representing what is believed to be an optimal level of practice. Policies and procedures will reflect variations in practice settings or clinical situations, which will determine the degree to which the recommended practices can be implemented.
AORN recognizes the numerous types of settings in which perioperative nurses practice. These recommended practices are intended as guidelines adaptable to various practice settings. These practice settings include traditional ORs, ambulatory surgery units, physicians' offices, cardiac catheterization suites, endoscopy suites, radiology departments, and all other areas where operative and other invasive procedures may be performed.
PURPOSE: These recommended practices provide guidelines for attire worn within the semirestricted and restricted areas of the surgical environment. The human body is a major source of microbial contamination in this environment; therefore, scrub clothing is worn to promote a high-level of cleanliness and hygiene within the surgical environment. These recommended practices are not intended to address sterile attire worn at the surgical field.
RECOMMENDED PRACTICE I
All individuals who enter the semirestricted and restricted areas of the surgical suite should wear freshly laundered surgical attire intended for use only within the surgical suite.
1. Facility approved, clean, and freshly laundered surgical attire should be donned in a designated dressing area of the facility upon entry or re-entry to the facility.13 If scrubs are worn into the institution from outside, they should be changed before entering semirestricted or restricted areas to minimize the potential for contamination (eg, animal hair, cross contamination from other uncontrolled environments).4
2. Surgical attire helps contain bacterial shedding and promotes environmental control.1,5 Surgical attire made of reusable woven fabric or single-use, nonwoven fabric that is low-linting should be worn. Low-linting surgical attire that minimizes bacterial shedding and provides comfort, safety, and a professional appearance should be selected. As personnel move, friction between their bodies and clothing frees bacteria. Research indicates that chafing increases dispersal of body scurf into the environment.5 If a two-piece pantsuit is worn, the top of the scrub...