Tag Archives: infection control

Top 5 Operating Room (OR) Protocols

Just like in any profession, surgeons and auxiliary medical personnel have to follow certain guidelines, in order to ensure that things run smoothly in the operating room. Below are the top 5 operating room (OR) protocols you should know about.

• Asepsis and infection control. The term asepsis means the absence of germs or any other infectious agents. Asepsis techniques are of vital importance during surgery, because anything that comes in contact with a wound, such as surgical instruments or doctor’s gloves, has to be as sterile as possible so as to protect the wellbeing of the patient. in order to maintain asepsis in the operating room, as well as the sterility of all instruments and equipment used, the surgical team has to work together. Each member of the medical personnel has to do their part in making sure that anything used in the operating room is as germ-free as possible.

• Preparation of the OR. for any surgery to run smoothly, the operating room has to be ready ahead of time. this procedure usually starts first thing in the morning, when a person in charge checks the operating schedule to see what surgeries will be done that day. The preparation of the OR includes damp dusting the room, setting up the equipment, and checking surgical devices and lights to see if they function properly. The person or persons in charged with this has to thoroughly wash their hands and wear appropriate protective equipment before entering the OR.

• Draping the patient. this is a crucial step in any surgery, and it consists of covering the patient, the operating table, and the surrounding areas with drapes called sterile fields. These drapes can be made out of plastic and paper, which are disposable, or they can be muslin drapes, which can be reused.

• Preparation for procedure. this step involves setting the operating table to the right height, adjusting the lights above the patient, arranging the instruments according to the surgeon’s needs and preferences, and cleaning the patient’s exposed body areas with a sterile solution. also a part of preparing the procedure is the induction of the patient, or better said, putting him or her under anesthesia. this is performed by the anesthesiologist, either in a special room, or in the very place where the surgery will take place.

• Perfect team work. for any surgery to go according to plan, surgical team members have to cooperate with each other. for example, the nurse has to assist the surgeon by tying their gown, opening the package contain the gloves, pouring sterile solutions, and handing knife blades, suture materials and so on. in case there is more than one surgeon operating, they have to divide the tasks. One can make the incision and the other can suture the wounds. It is equally important that throughout the surgical intervention, the surgeon and the anesthesiologist are in constant communication, in case any problem arises.

These 5 OR protocols are the most important procedures needed to be followed in case of any surgical intervention.

Top 5 Operating Room (OR) Protocols

Cosmetic Surgery Has Been Around For A Very Long Time

It might seem that cosmetic surgery is a very recent invention. In fact this is not true as it has been around for many thousands of years. the first documented record of any kind of plastic surgery taking place was two thousand years before Christ in India. This kind of surgery is called corrective, restorative, or it can be a kind of microsurgery.

Reconstructive surgery was also performed in Ancient Egypt and Ancient Rome. it did not become commonplace until better methods of anaesthesia were invented. Before this time it was obviously excruciatingly painful as it involved removing flaps of skin to rebuild other areas of the body. There was also a great risk of infection until modern methods of sterilization and infection control were invented. the introduction of penicillin was a massive leap forward.

In eighteen twenty seven a surgeon named John Peter Mettauer performed the first successful cleft palate operation. He even designed the instruments for the operation himself. towards the end of the nineteenth century a lot of surgeons were experimenting with rhinoplasty, or nose reductions or reconstructions.

It was during the course of the first world war that many new techniques were pioneered. a new Zealand surgeon named Harold Gilles was instrumental in helping many young men who had badly disfigured by their injuries. His work was carried on during world war two by his cousin Archibald McIndoe.

McIndoe set up a burns unit that would become famous throughout the world for young airmen who had suffered terrible burns during the fighting. the members of this very select group were called the Guinea Pigs, and they had their own club called the Guinea Pig club. McIndoe helped many of these brave men to recover from their injuries with his pioneering surgeries.

The work of this burns unit still continues today in the McIndoe burns unit in the Queen Victoria hospital in the town of East Grinstead in southern England. the survivors of the Guinea Pig club still meet today. At the end of world war two it had nearly seven hundred members, and there are still two hundred remaining members who get together regularly.

Today this kind of surgery is widely used for cosmetic reasons. There are quite literally millions of procedures done throughout the world every year. Cheek lift surgery, cosmetic eyelid surgery, cheek augmentation and a face lift are just a few of the many procedures that are now available.

The massive rise in demand for cosmetic surgery procedures has perhaps come about in the pursuit for perfection. the media is full of images of women and men who represent an ideal image. these people have the time and money to devote to their appearance, and quite often their profession demands it if they are in front of the cameras. the media is quick to comment if one of these stars looks tired or gains a few pounds so the pressure to be thin and fabulous looking is immense. This pressure filters down to the rest of the ordinary mortals who want to look like the stars they idolize, and so they may be tempted to turn to surgery to try to achieve the same kind of perfection.

Cosmetic Surgery Has Been Around For A Very Long Time