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A U G U S T 2 0 1 4 | O U T P AT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E
INFECTION PREVENTION
products for pre-operative
patient bathing." A team of
physicians, RNs and infec-
tion preventionists should
standardize your facility's
instructions.
To get your patients to
comply with your instruc-
tions, you may want to con-
sider partnering with sur-
geons' offices to promote
the practice to patients early
in the process, as well as
washing patients while
they're in pre-op. "Then you
know they're clean," says
Ms. Wood.
Pre-op baths and showers
frequently take place out-
side the perioperative envi-
ronment, so ensuring
patient compliance with
your instructions is key to
getting good results.
Researchers from the
Medical College of
Wisconsin in Milwaukee
think that electronic inter-
vention may help.
For a study published in
• Shower/bathe with CHG scrub the
night before surgery and the
morning of surgery.
40%
• Shower/bathe with CHG scrub
once a day for 2 or more days
prior to surgery.
11%
• Wipe surgical site with antiseptic
cloth the night before surgery and
the morning of surgery.
11%
• Wipe surgical site with antiseptic
cloth once a day for 2 or more days
prior to surgery.
2%
• We don't give patients pre-op
bathing instructions.
36%
SOURCE:
Outpatient Surgery InstaPoll,
July 2014, n=190
INSTAPOLL
What Are Your Pre-Op Bathing
Instructions to Patients?