The Dirty Truth About Endoscope Processing and What We Can Do To Fix It
There are 54 billion bacterial cells on a single cubic centimeter of the average kitchen sponge. They are breeding grounds for all types of germs and bacteria. A common sponge’s spatial partitioning – the way it’s divided into different sectors of various sizes with a porous absorbent surface – caters to bacteria that prefer isolated environments and those that prefer to be around other organisms as well, making it the best of both worlds for microbial communities...
Pretreating Endoscopes
Ask any Sterile Processing technician about the most important first step in the decontamination process, they will always repeat this refrain “Cleaning is the most important first step, because if it’s not clean, it cannot be disinfected or sterilized.” SPD professionals have long recognized how difficult it is to clean used devices and instruments post procedure. Especially challenging are complex endoscopes, with small inner channels, valves, and ports. When left in the open-air bioburden and organic material harden...
Low Temp Sterilization Failures And How to Avoid Them
Have you ever noticed as you’re waiting to board a flight that the pilot will do a walk around of the plane. He’ll look at the front wheels, walk underneath and shine a flashlight into an open compartment, take a moment to inspect the fuel connection and then the wings. The pre-flight checklist is done so the pilot knows the plane is safe to fly it's one of the reasons flying is so safe.
Is Education Really Power? In A Word... YES
Education lays the groundwork needed to feel confident in our abilities and helps us find our passions in life. If you think back to when you’re just learning a new task it can seem quite overwhelming. Thirty years ago, when Case Medical was just getting started making our first trays seemed almost impossible, but we kept at it...
Pre-treating Endoscopes at Point of Use; A Practice for Better Outcomes
Common sense is sound, practical judgment concerning everyday matters. Funny how the common sense things we do at home can translate into best practices on the job. Take for example the dirty dishes after breakfast, dried on egg yolk can be tough as heck to wash off by hand, let alone expecting the dishwasher to clean it. So, at home we rinse the dishes before they go into the dishwasher. The same holds true when it comes to pre-cleaning medical devices like endoscopes with many passages to clean inside and out...
