An audit of theatre scrubrooms in a district general hospital

While much has been written on surgical theatre design, little can be found on the design of theatre scrubrooms. An audit of theatres at a modern district general hospital (DGH) revealed that only one scrubroom had the minimum free floor space required and none complied with other baseline parameters. A survey of surgeons revealed that 60% had to re-scrub because their hands had desterilised through insufficient scrubroom space. The implications for hygiene hazards are clear. We review the literature and outline the basic dimensions which should be incorporated in the design of modern theatre scrubrooms.