Paper
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
648
An Observation Study of Best Practices of Asepsis with Perioperative Personnel
Jeanette S. Adams, PhD, CRNI, APRN, School of Nursing and Health Studies, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA
| Learning Objective #1: Delineate standards of care related to principles of asepsis in perioperative surgical procedures. |
| Learning Objective #2: Identify two areas of asepsis that perioperative nursing practices demonstrate noncompliance. |
Principles of asepsis are the cornerstone for best practice and positive patient outcomes for surgical procedures. Surgical site infections are the second most common cause of health care acquired infections in the United States. Of the approximately 2 million people who have surgery annually, it is projected that 500,000 will succumb to a health care acquired infection. Furthermore, 40% to 60% of surgical site infections are estimated to be preventable. The operating room is a microcosm of aseptic practices and serves as a laboratory of best practices to reduce the risk of surgical site infections. The purpose of this study was to determine if perioperative personnel comply with the fundamental principles of asepsis during routine surgery. Data collection involved demographic data, survey data on self-reported aseptic practices and direct observation of aseptic practices by the investigator. The observation instrument was developed using a Likert scale and was based upon the standards of care and guidelines by the Center for Disease Prevention and Control Guidelines for Prevention of Surgical Site Infections (CDC), Association of Perioperative Nursing, and the American Professionals of Infection Control. The study was conducted in the operating rooms at a large urban medical center in the United States. Data analysis using t tests demonstrated significance of noncompliance in several areas. Discussion of strategies to promote emphasis and heightened awareness for the adherence to principles of asepsis will be presented.