sterile sheets after THR?

How would you even keep it sterile?

You can't, of course--as soon as it hits the bed and the patient, it isn't sterile. Supposedly it minimizes the bacteria exposure to the incision. The bedsheets are changed daily in any case.

Is there not a dry sterile dressing on the incision anyway? Or am I missing something?

Yes, there is a dry sterile dressing over the incision.

Where I work, we don't use dressings on hips

You don't use dressings at all?

I put a new sheet on the bed and the patient gets a new gown. There is no way to keep a bed sheet sterile after surgery.

Ours have a foam dressing over the gauze/opsite dsg for POD 0 & 1. Then gauze/opsite. We have one surgeon who leaves knees OTA, but none of the hips are ever OTA. Interesting.

Has anyone ever heard of making a patient's bed with a sterile drape after total hip replacement (so that the patient's dressed incision rests on the drape, rather than the regular sheets)? This is the policy at my current hospital and I am puzzled about where the practice comes from, and have doubts that it serves a purpose.

Clean sheets? Yes.

Sterile drapes? No.

Sterile anything costs $$$ so what XYZ hospital is doing sounds very expensive to me...

Allie

Side note...we do (sometimes, depending on the nurse) wrap our hemovac drains in a single Chux...but that's more to prevent mess if the drain falls apart...and the Chux isn't sterile...

Allie

You don't use dressings at all?

Only use dressings if it's draining. Our surgeon sutures and them skin glue protectant, no staples either. Btw, we do some same day hips, but most leave POD1, knees leave POD2. Surgeon uses minimally invasive technique.

we have new surgeon who leaves hips ota; painted with betadine BID