Standard Operating Room

Operating room standards are there for the protection of the patients and are very important. Infection is one of the most potent killers on the surface of this planet. Bacteria and viruses can set in within seconds and are the hardest enemies for the human body to fight.

To prevent infection during a surgical procedure, there are a number of standards that have been laid down to standardize the industry and ensure that the highest levels of safety are always in place. Some hospitals add to these standards or modify the order of some of the sterilization procedures, but the standards are always the highest priority.

In order to prepare a surgical room for use there are a number of things done and the procedure really should start at the end of the previous surgery. All of the equipment should be sterilized, as well as all of the surfaces in the room and the equipment should be sealed in plastic covers. This makes sure that the next surgical team finds a sterile environment to start with.

Damp dusting is the first and foremost to be done. This is done in a very specific order. The order is from the highest to the lowest point, and from the outside walls of the room in to the center.

Once this has been done, the equipment is readied and checked, as well as the kick buckets being prepared. The stock of the cabinets is checked to make sure that no one will have to come or go from the room during surgery. It is important that all of the equipment is checked whether it is to be used during the current procedure or not. All of these things are laid down in the operating room standards.

The scrub nurse will know that exact arrangement of the furniture for the upcoming procedure. This will vary a bit depending on the type of surgery that is going to be performed. The scrub is the liaison between surgical team and the preparation team.

At this point the loose supplies are brought in and arranged. If any of the tools were not wrapped and sterilized after the last procedure, then this is time when they are placed in the autoclave. Everything is arranged as per the surgeon's preference card and scrub nurses instructions.

Once the equipment and tools are in place, then finally any wrap kits are laid out and opened. These are the prepackages kits such as the gown and the suture kits. These operating room standards help make the surgery as worry free as possible. Without such standards, there would be many more deaths by infection than there are today.