Patient CareQuestion 15 of 100
When cleaning a surgical wound with sterile gauze, what technique should the medical assistant use?
a.Scrub back and forth vigorously across the incision several times with one gauze
b.Clean from the outer skin toward the incision line
c.Wipe in a circle from the outside inward with the same gauze until the area looks clean
d.Clean from the incision outward, using a new gauze for each stroke
Explanation
Wound cleaning moves from the cleanest area outward to the more contaminated surrounding skin, and each stroke uses a fresh sterile gauze so organisms are not dragged back to the incision. Scrubbing back and forth or wiping inward carries skin flora into the wound. Reusing the same gauze recontaminates the site no matter which direction is used.
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