Sterile Technique

The following proposed Recommended Practices for Sterile Technique is presented for review and comment. This is a DRAFT. These recommended practices are intended as achievable recommendations representing what is believed to be an optimal level of practice. Policies and procedures will reflect variations in practice settings and/or clinical situations that determine the degree to which the recommended practices can be implemented. AORN recognizes the various settings in which perioperative nurses practice, and as such, these recommended practices are intended as guidelines adaptable to various practice settings. These practice settings include traditional operating rooms (ORs), ambulatory surgery centers, physicians’ offices, cardiac catheterization laboratories, endoscopy suites, radiology departments, and all other areas where surgery and other invasive procedures may be performed.