Proper Operating Room Attire

Scrubs do not just protect your doctors' clothes from becoming soiled. They make up a vital element of proper operating room attire. Proper attire minimizes your exposure to microorganisms from the hair, exposed skin and mucous membranes of operating room personnel.

Material

• Operating room personnel should wear attire made from tight woven cotton or cotton blend material since it does not produce lint. Alternatively, they may wear single-use, disposable apparel made from non-woven materials of natural or synthetic fiber.

Requirements

• According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a person entering an operating room should wear a scrub suit (shirt and pants), a surgical mask, a surgical cap and sterile gloves. In cases where she can anticipate splashes, sprays and splatters, she should protect her eyes, nose and mouth with face shields. Shoe covers provide protection from blood and body fluids on the floor.

Considerations

• Some medical facilities allow personnel to launder their own attire. However, the Association of Operating Room Nurses recommends the use of certified commercial laundering facilities to protect medical personnel and their families from the possible presence of infectious diseases and pathogens in attire soiled in the operating room.