Asepsis, or the aseptic technique, is another term related to sterilization. It involves the exclusion of microorganisms from a medical environment or procedure. Surgeons might wear sterile gloves, isolation gowns or suits and masks in the operating room as part of surgical asepsis or sterile technique. The aseptic technique may involve sterilizing the skin with alcohol and often includes other steps to preserve a sterile environment.

 

The aseptic technique is critical because of the prevalence of healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs). HAIs are infections patients contract through exposures that occur in the healthcare environment. While one in 31 hospital patients has an HAI at any given time, most are preventable. Some of the most common HAIs include:

 

·        Catheter-associated urinary tract infections.

·        Central line-associated bloodstream infections.

·        Surgical site infections.

·        Ventilator-associated pneumonia.

·        Clostridium difficile infections.

The procedures most likely to result in these infections demand an aseptic technique. Healthcare professionals employ it when they are:

 

·        Dressing surgical wounds and burns.

·        Performing biopsies.

·        Suturing wounds.

·        Inserting a urinary catheter, chest tube, intravenous line or wound drain.

·        Administering injections.

·        Performing surgical procedures.

·        Conducting vaginal examinations with instruments.

·        Delivering babies.

Healthcare professionals must perform four types of aseptic techniques, including:

 

1. Barriers

Barrier medical devices stop germs from transferring between healthcare workers, patients and surfaces. Aseptic barriers include:

 

·        Sterile masks

·        Sterile gowns

·        Sterile drapes

·        Sterile gloves

·        Protective packaging on sterilized instruments

Before donning sterile barriers, healthcare workers first perform hand hygiene, usually through washing or sanitizing their hands.

 

2. Equipment and Patient Preparation

Any procedure involving an aseptic technique requires a healthcare professional to prepare both the patient and equipment first. This type of preparation might involve:

 

·        Using antiseptic wipes to disinfect a patient’s skin.

·        Sterilizing equipment and instruments.

·        Keeping sterilized equipment inside plastic wrappers to prevent contamination before use.

 

3. Environmental Controls

It’s also critical to consider the patient’s surroundings, or the designated aseptic field. The room where the procedure takes place usually marks the boundary of the aseptic field. Maintaining the aseptic field involves:

 

·        Keeping doors closed.

·        Minimizing entries and exits from the defined aseptic area.

·        Allowing only one patient per aseptic field.

·        Permitting only necessary personnel.

 

4. Contact Guidelines

Once a healthcare professional has initiated aseptic technique by washing their hands and donning sterile barriers, they must follow certain rules for contact. They may only touch sterile surfaces and instruments in keeping with sterile-to-sterile contact guidelines. They cannot touch any non-sterile surfaces. The sterile devices must follow the same rules. Any sterilized device that falls to the floor, becomes compromised or sustains damage to its wrapper must be removed and resterilized before use.

 

The Differences Between Aseptic, Sterile and Clean Techniques

It’s easy to misunderstand the relationship between the aseptic and sterile techniques because the two terms go hand in hand. Essentially, sterile describes an object that has been completely rid of microbes. Asepsis describes the conditions required to keep that object sterile. The sterile technique involves methods such as dry heat, ethylene oxide or gamma rays to produce a sterilized device. The aseptic technique involves creating barriers, preparing patients and equipment, controlling the environment and following contact guidelines.

 

Aseptic technique and clean technique are similar in that they are used during medical examinations and procedures to limit harmful pathogens. When achieving medical asepsis, the goal is to prevent the exposure of any microbes through the use of sterile barriers and materials. When employing a clean technique, the goal is to lower the number of pathogens, or harmful microbes, exposed to the patient.

 

The clean technique involves three of the same methods as the aseptic one:

 

·        Barriers

·        Patient and equipment preparation

·        Environmental controls

Besides the absence of sterile-to-sterile contact guidelines, the three methods are applied more loosely in the clean technique. For example, with barriers, the healthcare professional need only use appropriate hand hygiene and non-sterile gloves. Rather than sterilizing tools, the worker ensures they don’t become directly contaminated. The patient also doesn’t need to remain in an aseptic field. Instead, the environment undergoes routine cleaning.

 

Healthcare workers use clean techniques while:

 

·        Giving an injection.

·        Emptying a urinary catheter drainage bag.

·        Inserting or removing a peripheral intravenous line.

·        Removing a urinary catheter.

·        Giving a bed bath.