What is Scrubbing In?
When surgeons and other medical staff sterilize themselves as much as possible to enter an operating room, the process is known as “scrubbing in.” This scrubbing in process involves thoroughly washing the hands and arms, donning a sterile surgical gown, cap, and face mask, and putting on surgical gloves. Scrubbing in is designed to make the operating room as clean as possible, and once someone has scrubbed in, he or she is known as “sterile,” which means that it is safe to work in the surgical field. “Nonsterile” people and objects, by the way, are still extremely clean, they just aren’t clean enough to be safe for the patient. The order of the steps involved in scrubbing in vary, depending on the hospital, but usually the process starts with donning a “scrub cap,” a cap which covers all of the hair to ensure that it does not contaminate the surgical field, followed by a face mask. Then, the hands and arms must be meticulously cleaned with antibacterial soap, with care being taken to a
