Editing Nursing Skills and Procedures (section)

=== Clean versus sterile technique ===
Medical asepsis, also called clean technique, reduces the number of microorganisms and is used for routine hygiene, most chronic wound care, and administration of oral medications. Surgical asepsis, or sterile technique, eliminates microorganisms and is required whenever a body cavity or the bloodstream is entered or a break in skin integrity is dressed in an acute care setting. Sterile technique is required for urinary catheter insertion, tracheal suctioning, intravenous insertion, central line dressing changes, and most acute surgical wound dressing changes.

Sterile field rules worth memorizing because they generate exam items:
* A one inch border around the sterile field is considered contaminated.
* Anything below waist level or out of the line of vision is contaminated.
* Moisture wicks microorganisms, so a wet field is a contaminated field.
* Reaching across a sterile field contaminates it. Move around the field instead.
* Sterile items are held above waist level and in front of the body.
* The nurse never turns away from the field.