Title
Infection Prevention in the Operating Room Anesthesia Work Area
Authoring Organization
Publication Month/Year
December 3, 2018
Last Updated Month/Year
October 15, 2024
Supplemental Implementation Tools
Document Type
Consensus
External Publication Status
Published
Country of Publication
US
Document Objectives
This guidance provides recommendations specific to the anesthesia work area to improve infection prevention through HH, environmental disinfection, and implementation of effective improvement efforts.
PICO Questions
Which activities in anesthesia care should always result in hand hygiene (HH)?
Should providers wear double gloves during airway management and discard the outer glove immediately after airway manipulation?
Where should facilities locate alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR) dispensers in the OR?
Can the anesthesia provider apply alcohol-based hand rub on gloves that are being worn during a case, rather than removing the gloves, performing hand hygiene, and then replacing a new set of gloves if contaminated?
Should anesthesia machines be partially or completely covered with disposable covers to prevent contamination?
When operating rooms are prepared between uses, what cleaning and disinfection of the anesthesia machine and anesthesia work area should take place?
Should injection ports used by anesthesia providers in the operating room be covered with isopropyl alcohol-containing caps?
Should injection ports—without alcohol-containing caps—used by anesthesia providers in the operating room be scrubbed with alcohol before each use?
When anesthesia drugs are drawn at the point of care should vials be scrubbed with alcohol prior to puncture?
Which intravenous catheters should be placed with full barrier precautions?
Should providers always recap a medication syringe after giving a portion of the syringe contents to the patient if the syringe and medication may be used again on that patient?
What measures should be taken to protect clean supplies in the anesthesia cart from contamination?
Should the anesthesia supply cart be cleaned between cases?
What is the expiration time for sterile injectable drugs and intravenous solutions prepared by anesthesia providers?
How long can intravenous bags be spiked in advance of commencing use?
Should syringes and medication vials be reused?
How should keyboards and touch screens in the anesthesia work area be cleaned and protected from contamination?
What infection prevention and control modifications should be made, if any, for patients in contact isolation?
Which techniques should be used to improve infection prevention practices by anesthesia providers?
What is the impact of providing measurement and feedback data on hand hygiene?
What is the impact of providing measurement and feedback data on environmental disinfection?
Inclusion Criteria
Male, Female, Adolescent, Adult, Child, Infant, Older adult
Health Care Settings
Hospital, Operating and recovery room
Intended Users
Epidemiology infection prevention, medical assistant, medical techologist technician, nurse, nurse anesthetist, nurse practitioner, physician, physician assistant, surgical technologist
Scope
Prevention
Keywords
anesthesia, infection prevention, operating room
Source Citation
Munoz-Price LS, et al. (2019). Infection prevention in the operating room anesthesia work area. Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology 2019, 40, 1–17. doi: 10.1017/ice.2018.303