Which items constitute common sterile technique breaches and the immediate corrective actions you should take?

Prepare for the Surgical Technology and Patient Care Fundamentals Test. Utilize flashcards and multiple choice questions with detailed explanations. Ace your exam!

Disruptions to sterility happen when the barriers protecting the surgical field are breached, allowing non-sterile elements to contaminate the area. The clear breaches include compromised gloves or gown, a contaminated sterile field, nonsterile personnel entering the sterile area, or draping that has been breached. When this occurs, act immediately to re-establish sterility: stop the procedure, re-sterilize or re-drape as needed, replace any compromised gloves, and notify the surgeon so the sterile field can be re-established.

Other options don’t describe breaches of the sterile field. Failure to document charting relates to record-keeping, incorrect patient weight concerns patient information, and a disinfection timer mis-set concerns prep timing rather than a breach of the sterile barrier. So the option detailing breaches and corrective actions best reflects what to do in a sterile technique breach.