‘If you read one thing today, make sure it’s Vicky Neville’s open letter’, Aseptic technique is a core competency for many nurses and is required for everyday procedures such as catheterisation and wound dressing. 2. catheterisation, endoscopy, endoscopic surgery, insertion of intraperitoneal / Tenckhoff catheters), When the skin or mucous membranes are breached (surgery, insertion of IV or Arterial lines, lumbar puncture, insertion of epidural catheters), Where a site already has resident bacteria (i.e. The aim of … Immunocompromized (Neutropaenic) patients, babies, the elderly, diabetics and malnourished patients are especially at risk. The purpose of these guidelines is to provide to a safe and effective technique for all aseptic procedures. However the remainder in the bottle/container may become contaminated after some time. Yet most microorganisms are quite harmless. I am contactable by e-mail at: drdollah@gmail.com, The content of this website by Abdollah Salleh is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.Articles can be copied or reproduced freely with attribution to the author. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Thanks Dr for your support in facilitating better understanding of aseptic technique and the principles. I first wrote it on 4th August 2014. The correct practice of this technique requires the understanding of some principles and facts. Maintaining sterility of sterile field and instruments by preventing microbial contaminationby contact with non-sterile objects; such as: the patient’s body,t. Aseptic technique An aseptic technique ensures that only uncontaminated equipment and fluids come into contact with susceptible body sites. ( Log Out / in and out with regards the sterile field. Stages of medical aseptic technique Environment. Infection is caused by microorganisms (Bacteria, fungi, protozoa & viruses). Thanks for the interest. In fact, it is quite difficult to prevent contamination during this procedure when performed by a single individual. I believe these principles should be spread to and applied by the public especially with the current COVID-19 pandemic. It is important that all sterile packaged equipment is stored in a clean, dry, dust free environment. Medical asepsis can be used in procedures that: Surgical aseptic technique should be used when procedures are technically complex and invasive, involve extended procedure time (more than 20 minutes) or a large, open key site and large or numerous key parts. Usually, this is created by opening a sterile set fully on a trolley. If for any reason the ETT tube need to be put down, place it back onto the sterile package looked after by the assistant. Hands can be decontaminated by washing with soap and water or by use of alcohol-based handrub (Loveday et al, 2014). This is unlikely if cannulas are retained for short periods (not > 48 hours). When the wound is rid of infection then gauze moistened with saline or plain proprietary dressing is used. If MRSA is present Povidone iodine should be used and if it is Pseudomonas, it is customary to use Acetic acid. Once you have clean hands, the procedure should be clearly documented in the patient’s records (Nursing and Midwifery Council, 2018). Some instruments e.g. At the end of the procedure, all waste must be disposed of in the appropriate waste stream bin, such as a healthcare waste bin. Principles of Aseptic Technique The primary goal of aseptic technique is to prevent key sites and key parts from coming into contact with pathogens. There are a number of stages and principles for aseptic technique (Table 1); the fundamental initial stage is hand hygiene, which must be performed before any aseptic technique (World Health Organization, 2019; Loveday et al, 2014). Nursing Times [online]; 116: 38-41. tap water of drinkable quality and non-sterile gloves can be worn. Rowley et al (2010) recognised the need for a systematic and robust approach to aseptic technique that aims to prevent the contamination of wounds or other susceptible sites by removing variation in practice (Rowley et al, 2010). Authors: Andrea Denton and Carole Hallam are independent nurse consultants, AC Independent Nursing Consultants. Conditions and situations hawkers don ’ t quite understand food hygiene name the two as... Surgeon, currently offering consultancy services in information Management in Health care services name the two as. Ipc ) Team by email all times in the operating Room nursing consultants made to reduce the of. 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