Standardization of a surgical site precleansing technique for vascular patients.

Surgical site infection (SSI) is a serious complication that can increase hospital costs and length of stay and may be life threatening. The preoperative chlorhexidine shower is widely recommended to decrease SSI risk, although standardized guidelines for this practice and supporting clinical evidence are lacking. Because vascular patients often have comorbidities that hinder preoperative showering, OR nurses at a specialty hospital in Dallas, Texas, developed and implemented an intraoperative surgical site precleansing technique as standard practice for patients undergoing procedures involving the axilla or groin.