Editing Infection Control and Safety (section)

== Sterile Technique Principles ==

# Only sterile items may touch a sterile field. If in doubt about sterility, consider the item contaminated.
# The outer '''1-inch (2.5 cm) border''' of a sterile field is considered contaminated, as is any part of the drape that hangs below the table edge.
# Keep sterile items above waist level and within your line of vision at all times. Never turn your back on a sterile field and never reach across it.
# Moisture carries organisms by capillary action. A wet sterile field over an unsterile surface is contaminated (strike-through contamination).
# Air currents carry contaminants. Avoid coughing, sneezing, talking excessively, or reaching over the field. Wear a mask when required by the procedure.
# Open the first flap of a sterile package '''away''' from your body, then the side flaps, then the flap toward you. When opening a wrapped package held in the hand, secure the loose edges.
# When pouring sterile solution, remove the cap and place it face up on a clean surface, hold the bottle with the label toward the palm, pour a small amount off to the side to cleanse the lip, then pour without splashing and without touching the container. Once opened, the edge of the bottle is contaminated.
# Sterile personnel stay within the sterile area, face one another, and pass back to back. Unsterile personnel stay at least one foot away from the field.
# Never leave a sterile field unattended.

'''Application note.''' If a sterile glove touches the outside of the wrapper or the nurse's own bare arm, the glove is contaminated and must be replaced, not wiped or rinsed. If a drop of solution falls on the drape, that area is contaminated and should be covered by a new sterile drape or the field must be reestablished.