Surgical gear has evolved tremendously throughout the decades. Up until the end of the 19th century, before the germ theory of illness was established and generally recognized, most doctors would perform surgery in the same suits they used for ordinary business. With today’s knowledge of how illnesses propagate, we can see that this isn’t exactly the cleanest of environments.
Surgeons were not compelled to wear specific clothes in the operating room until the early twentieth century. ORs now mandate their employees to wear proper attire that is meant to reduce the transmission of infection and sickness. Each one of the four fundamental surgical garments listed below is now commonplace, although it’s unknown when they were first introduced and when they became universally accepted. In most contemporary hospitals, all OR employees, not only surgeons, are required to wear the same uniform.
Shoes
In hospitals, especially in operating rooms the patient’s and the team’s health is essential. Prior to the introduction of medical clogs, it was typical for healthcare workers to use the very same footwear anywhere, even in the diagnostic rooms or for surgery. Shoes, on the other hand, contain impurities and germs that compromise the cleanliness of ORs, creating a risk to patients. However, by using sterilizable surgical clogs, these hazards can be reduced, and the sterility of the hospital setting can be maintained.
Scrubs
Scrubs is a word used to describe the hygienic garments used by operating room personnel. They usually consist of a V-neck short-sleeved shirt and loose-fitting drawstring slacks. Scrubs gained their name from the fact that they were first worn by operating room staff to sterilize oneself, a practice known as “scrubbing in”. However, their usage has moved further than the operating room to certain other settings where individuals are exposed to infectious pathogens, such as emergency rooms, doctors’ clinics, vet clinics, and more. Some medical institutions even use distinct coloured scrubs to quickly distinguish between employees from different departments.
Masks
Surprisingly, surgical masks have not been invented to guarantee patients’ safety, but rather to protect the doctors who take care of them. During the early twentieth-century Spanish Flu outbreak, some surgeons began using basic cotton masks to prevent themselves from contacting the disease. To avoid venting at the edges of the mask, proper surgical masks are now employed. They ensure protection by covering the wearer’s lips and nose and reducing the possibility of transmitting nasal and respiratory bacteria into the sterile area.
Gloves
Caroline Hampton, the principal nurse at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1889, is said to be the first person to employ medical gloves. She experienced a skin reaction to a chemical during her first winter at the clinic. Her partner and surgeon William Halsted, persuaded a rubber firm to make wearable thin-layered rubber gloves for her. He made the use of gloves a norm at the same hospital five years later. Several surgeons were hesitant to embrace the technique since the gloves caused problems while performing the motions required in many surgical procedures. Gloves, on the other hand, dramatically increased the hygiene of the operating area. The very first disposable rubber medical gloves were gmanufactured in 1964 and their usage in the medical field has since turned into routine and also mandatory.
