What it means
The room where surgery is done, also called the OR, theater or surgical suite. It is a restricted area: everyone wears scrub attire, hair covers and masks, and air flow, temperature and humidity are controlled to lower the risk of infection. The team usually includes the surgeon, the anesthesia provider, a circulating nurse and a scrub person.
For the nurse
Before surgery, the team checks the client's identity, procedure and site, and pauses for a time-out before the incision.
At a glance
| Also written | operating rooms, operating theatre, operating theater |
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Related terms
surgical asepsis
Practices that keep an area or object completely free of microorganisms; also called sterile technique.
elective surgery
Surgery that is planned and scheduled ahead of time because it is not an emergency.
sterile field
An area set up with sterile drapes and supplies, kept free of all germs, for a sterile procedure.