Question

During surgery, you notice that one of the drapes on the patient has become soaked through with blood. The patient was thoroughly prepped before placement of the drape, and the bleeding itself has been controlled by the surgeon. What, if anything, should be done about the drape at this point?

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Answer 1

Draping is the process of covering the part of the patient's body which needs to be treated by creating a sterile barrier and maintaining a sterile field during a surgical procedure. The purpose of draping is very important before doing surgery as it avoids the passage of microorganisms from nonsterile to sterile areas.

Surgical Site Infection(SSI) is an issue that needs to be avoided while prepping a patient for surgery. Draping serves as a barrier to endogenous and exogenous sources of contamination, in particular endogenous contamination which is identified as a major source of SSI. Drapes not only protect the surgical sites but also allow the sterile instrumentation and supplies to be placed on the drapes by the CST and other surgical team members.

One of the standard practices while applying the drapes is "Drapes should be applied in such a way that they are resistant to fluid penetration". Body fluids and irrigating solutions shouldn't come in contact with drapes and make the contaminated and unfit for use. Likewise, any liquid like Blood, body fluids, and irrigating solutions should be suctioned as soon as possible from the drape in order to aid in preventing strike-through contamination.

In case for some reason the drapes get soaked in Blood, A suction tube or a vacuum pump-like device should be used to suck all the blood from the drapes and the patient's body so as to reduce the area of contamination. The surgery cannot be started without applying clean drapes which incur extra added cost to the hospital. The previously applied drapes are rendered useless and a new set should be applied with extra care and vigilance so as to not repeat the same mistake again. The surgical Team should also protect the sterile, gloved hands from contamination by “cuffing” the hands.

Some of the few pointers to keep in mind while applying drapes are:

• Disposable and nondisposable draped should be properly contained after the procedure.
• Drapes are not allowed to be folded prior to placement on the patient.
• Once a drape has been positioned it shouldn't be moved as it could bring the nonsterile portion of the drape into the sterile field causing contamination.
• If reusable drapes are being used, Manufacturer's instruction must be consulted in regard to care and reprocessing of the drapes.