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Patient

There are many factors in the patient’s
journey through surgery which contribute
to their risk of Surgical Site Infection (SSI) – for example, the patients themselves represent a large threat.

This is the place where you find
assistance for patient preparation.

Compact and illustrative.

Measures at a Glance

Surgical site infection prevention is a task in which different sections are involved. Find here all relevant measures and information per perspective to create your individual infection prevention bundle!

For an easier daily routine with infection prevention.

Close-up of a surgical procedur

Surgery & Procedure

  • Surgical Hand Antisepsis
  • Surgical gloves and surgical attire
  • Surgical Site Preparation
  • Surgical Irrigation
  • Surgical Wound
  • Equipment
  • Wound Drain
  • Further recommendations

Doctors wearing blue surgery attire while operating a patient.

OR Team

  • Behavior of OR team
  • Work attire and Personal Protective Equipment
  • Surgical Hand Antisepsis
  • Surgical gloves and attire
  • Surgical Site Preparation
  • Surgical irrigation
  • Hand Hygiene
  • Surgical wound
  • Further recommendations
Female patient resting on a bed, recovering after a successful surgery or sickness

Patient

  • Preoperative bathing
  • Patient clothing
  • Hair removal
  • Mechanical bowel preparation and use of oral antibiotics
  • Decolonization of Staphylococcus aureus carriage
  • Patient empowerment
  • Wound drain
  • Further recommendations
Close up of a hand wearing a glove and cleaning a frame.

Cleaning & Disinfection

  • Surface Cleaning
  • Surface Disinfection
  • Equipment
A female doctor wearing surgical attire is applying anesthesia to a patient.

Anesthetist & Team

  • Work attire and Personal Protective Equipment
  • Patient Perioperative Warming
  • Perioperative surgical antibiotic prophylaxis (SAP)
  • Behavior of OR team
  • Hand Hygiene
  • Further recommendations

General

  • Hand Hygiene
  • Perioperative surgical antibiotic prophylaxis (SAP)
  • Work attire and Personal Protective Equipment
  • Surgical Hand Antisepsis
  • Behavior of OR team
  • Surveillance
  • Structural Conditions

Core Measures

The best possible and lowest-risk patient care is the crucial basis of every surgical procedure. In this context, the germ colonisation of the patient himself is also of particular importance.

Therefore, the most important measures for preparing the patient for surgery are listed here.

Guideline-compliant. Compact. Illustrative. Expanded with 200 years of HARTMANNs expertise.

Preoperative bathing
Is full body washing recommended for all patients the day before surgery? Is an antiseptic wash recommended?

Answers to these questions you can find here…
Patient clothing 

Some points are of importance for the specific theatre wear of patients:1

  • easy access to the operative site
  • areas for placing devices
  • comfort and dignity

Get informed about these and other facts here…

Hair removal 

Numerous studies have shown: Elimination of preoperative shaving correlates with a lower risk of SSI.2

Find out more here…

Mechanical bowel preparation and use of oral antibiotics

By using both measures in combination, SSI, ileus and anastomotic leckage can be significantly reduced.2

Did you know?

Decolonization of Staphylococcus aureus carriage

A high proportion of SSI caused by S. aureus is due to the fact that the patients themselves are nasal carriers of this pathogen.2

Find this and other aspects here…

Patient Empowerment 

The patient is a potential recipient and also a potential carrier of nosocomial pathogens. In this respect, it makes sense to inform patients about basic infection prevention measures.

Make yourself a picture of this aspect…

Illustration of the wound drain method
Wound drain 
Removing of wound drain is suggested when clinically indicated. There is no evidence for an optimal timing for wound drain removal.3

Get informed here…

Complementary Measures 

Prevention of SSI includes not only hygiene measures but also therapeutic steps, structural conditions, and corresponding measures.

HARTMANN provides comprehensive information on the recommendations of international institutions like the WHO – even if they go beyond hygienic measures – to create a source for you to find everything in one place.

Illustration of a list with recommendations while applying anesthesia
Further Recommendations 

Find here a discussion about e.g. perioperative oxygenation and blood glucose control.

Have a look...

Bundle Measures 

For the prevention of SSI, it has proven effective to combine particularly important measures into a bundle of measures, to train on the bundle, and to monitor compliance with the bundle in the form of self-monitoring.1

Find new ideas here to combine measures and more…

Illustration of different surgery antisepsis steps for a patient.
Preoperative Patient Skin Antisepsis
Depending on the upcoming procedure and the patient's colonisation, a patient preparation checklist includes…

… a manageable list of fixed and variable items.
Illustration of the surgical team preparation
Surgical Team Preparation 

Do you have a standardized practice to prepare for surgical procedures?

Find guidance here.

Illustration for the basic surgery team preparation.
OR Basics

Even apparent and self-evident facts in the prevention of SSI should be regularly refreshed and communicated.

Use a compact bundle for this.

References:
1. NICE (2019) Surgical site infections: prevention and treatment. NICE guidelines. Published 11 April 2019. www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng125.
2. KRINKO (2018) Prävention postoperativer Wundinfektionen. Empfehlungen der Kommission für Krankenhaushygiene und Infektionsprävention (KRINKO) beim Robert Koch-Institut. Bundesgesundheitsbl 61: 448–473.
3. WHO. Global guidelines for the prevention of surgical site infection. World Health Organization 2016.