surgical drapes help protecting patients from fluids and hygiene, along with prevention of diseases spreading by simply covering up the patient in a laminate made specifically for surgery. It's a necessary measure to ensure the safety of the patient and lessen other risks involved with surgery. It also does help with reducing the mess afterwards and overall makes cleaning things up after the surgery all the easier. It can be easy to keep up a good hygiene through simple means, with laminated drapes and sheets being among said easy solutions for hospitals to use. Disposable hygiene products in general are an effective way for hospitals to deal with the issue of hygiene without overburdening workers or requiring hiring additional people just to deal with the messes left behind. Since disposable products can just be thrown away after use, there's no need to be concerned about washing it.
The use of disposable products
Outside of surgical drapes, there's many other disposable items used within clinics and hospitals, helping with limiting the spread of diseases and infections. Aprons, protective sheets and wipes are among the many things you'll find being used and simply discarded after use, making the workload for nurses and janitors all the less for them. Naturally, the quality of the items does matter since it's still a medical setting that all these things are being used, so there's a standard that needs to be reached before a hospital can consider purchasing them and using them. This means that they purchase these things from specific manufacturers, rather than just buy things from a regular store or producer.