From sterility standards to working without words: how the role of the surgeon’s right-hand man evolved

Every year on 14 November, the medical community celebrates Operating Room Nurse Day (Operating Room Nurse Day). The history of this date dates back to 1989 in the USA, when the Governor of Iowa, Terry Branstad, officially proclaimed a day to honour operating theatre professionals, recognising their crucial contribution to patient safety and the success of surgical procedures (there is also a similar date in Europe — European Operating Room Nurse Day on 15 February).

The operating theatre nurse is referred to as the surgeon’s ‘right-hand woman’ and ‘eyes’. She is responsible for ensuring the surgical field is absolutely sterile, that the instruments are impeccably prepared, for coordinating the team’s work and for monitoring every stage of the procedure, often understanding the surgeon’s intentions from a single glance or gesture.

Outstanding nurses in world history

The development of nursing as a highly specialised discipline is inextricably linked to the names of women who revolutionised standards of patient care and surgical hygiene:

Florence Nightingale (1820–1910)

A British reformer who, during the Crimean War, introduced strict rules on hygiene, ventilation and the care of the wounded, reducing the mortality rate in hospitals from 42 per cent to 2 per cent. She founded the world’s first secular school for nurses and laid the foundations for evidence-based medical statistics.

Clara Barton (1821–1912)

An American volunteer nurse during the American Civil War who organised field dressing stations right on the front line and later founded the American Red Cross.

Lillian Wald (1867–1940)

An American nurse and humanitarian who pioneered the concept of public health nursing; she was the first to introduce the role of school nurses and succeeded in establishing nursing courses at universities.

Famous Ukrainian nurses and their records of dedication to the profession

The Ukrainian school of operational and military nursing has a glorious tradition, enshrined both in history and in the present day:

Dasha Sevastopolskaya (Darya Mikhailova, 1836–1892)

One of the first military nurses, who, during the defence of Sevastopol in 1854–1855, set up a first-aid post at her own expense, assisted during difficult field operations and saved hundreds of wounded soldiers.

Valentina Tulyantseva

The most senior operating theatre nurse at the Kirovohrad Regional Hospital, who has devoted 60 years of her life to working in the operating theatre, having joined the hospital back in 1966. Even at her advanced age (over 80), she continued to prepare instruments for 5–10 elective and emergency operations every day and to pass on her experience to younger colleagues.

Tetyana Kharchenko and Olga Babkina

Contemporary Ukrainian military nurses who have been awarded the prestigious nationwide honour of ‘Best Nurse in Ukraine’. In particular, Tetyana Kharchenko, an operating theatre nurse at the Vinnytsia Military Hospital, and Senior Nurse Olga Babkina have become symbols of professional courage, ensuring the smooth running of surgical teams whilst saving wounded Ukrainian defenders.

Operating Theatre Nurses’ Day is an opportunity to thank the professionals whose composure, precision and dedication to their profession ensure that lives are saved every day.

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