Welcome to the lesson on staying sterile in the operating theatre. As you know, maintaining a sterile environment during surgery is crucial to preventing infections and ensuring the success of the procedure. You have already taken the necessary steps to scrub in and put on the correct attire, so now let's focus on how best to stay sterile for the remainder of the operation. Staying sterile in the operating theatre requires following some basic principles. Firstly, you should avoid touching non-sterile surfaces or objects. Secondly, you should keep the sterile field clear of non-sterile items. Finally, you should avoid contaminating the sterile field with non-sterile body parts, such as your hands or face. ​ There are several techniques you can use to stay sterile in the operating theatre. For example, when handling sterile instruments, you should grasp the instrument by the handle, not the tip. You can also use a "no-touch" technique, where instruments are passed from one person to another without direct contact. Instead, you can place instruments on a sterile surface or pass them to another person using a sterile tray or basin. ​ In addition to handling instruments correctly, it is important to maintain proper posture and body positioning while in the operating theatre. Your hand positioning is incredibly important and will be noticed if done incorrectly. When walking around the room your hands should be in the sterile field of your body. This is in front of you, along your midline between your chest and your umbilicus. I personally hole my hands like this, however any other arrangement that keeps your hands sterile is appropriate. You should refrain from dropping your hands below waist level and very much limit your hands being above your shoulders. Another tip is to avoid leaning over surgical site. Although this may allow you to get a better view of the operation, you should not lean over the site unless asked to do so by a surgeon as your head is not sterile. ​ It is also important to monitor the sterile environment for breaches in technique or contamination, and to address any issues that may arise. ​ To summarize, staying sterile in the operating theatre requires following basic principles and using specific techniques. It is also important to maintain a sterile environment through proper sterilization of instruments and equipment, and by monitoring for any breaches in technique or contamination. If you have any questions or concerns about maintaining a sterile environment, please don't hesitate to ask. Thank you for your participation in this lesson.