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The Soap Opera Continues...
Last week’s episode ended with a cliffhanger...
Here's more on the critical parameters for detergent selection.
“All cleaners are the same,” says vendor X. “Use only ours,” says the equipment supplier. We’ve heard some folks say, “We prefer the smell of wintergreen and the soothing color of blue or aquamarine.” “Why not dish detergent, it’s cheap?”
Our drama for this week is the tricky process of figuring out what type of cleaner to use for decontamination of reusable devices in automated washers! There are single, dual, and multi-enzymatic cleaners and non-enzymatic ones, pH neutral vs caustic or acidic cleaners, neutralizers, and rinse agents. Choosing the right product from the beginning will make your cleaning task easier, quicker, and more efficient. So, how do you know which product to use?
Dirt Is Dirt, Right?
Absolutely not! All soils are different and need to be treated properly. Often cleaning surgical instruments means dealing with a combination of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, organic and inorganic contaminants. This is where multi-enzymatic detergents come in as they attack a wide range of soils. However, the detergent that works well for manual cleaning of soiled surgical instruments at the sink, might not be the best choice for the ultrasonic or the automated washer disinfector where a low foam detergent is required. Surface cleaning of moveable equipment like IV poles, wheelchairs, or case carts have cleaning demands of their own, such as applying friction with a pre-moistened detergent wipe, as few go into an automated washer.
Any Cleaner Can Work, Huh?
Here is where you need to decide about what’s best for material compatibility. Stainless Steel? Aluminum? Glass? Metal? Rubber? Electronics? Understanding how different cleaners affect different surfaces and materials will certainly have an impact on your choice. It’s important to be sure that the cleaner you are using is compatible with the item you are cleaning and the process you selected. Beware of highly alkaline detergents even those that say aluminum friendly. They are caustic and highly corrosive.
A Detergent For All Your Cleaning Needs
If you are using an automatic washer/disinfector, it’s wise to use a low foaming cleaner to avoid an explosion of suds. If you are cleaning devices like our SteriTite sealed container or other containment devices or instrumentation made of aluminum or even titanium, should an alkaline cleaner or acidic neutralizer ever be used? Alkaline cleaners are specific as they work best with soil that is alkaline. Acidic soils do best with acidic cleaners. In fact, pH neutral cleaners work best with any type of material or soil. Which would you choose?
What then is best for cleaning all types of surgical devices?
The finale, given the range of reusable devices, the various materials of construction and the intended use for patient care procedures, is it possible to standardize of one brand? ANSI/AAMI ST 79 identifies the characteristics of an ideal cleaning agent. EPA provides a listing of safer, more effective detergents under its Safer Choice umbrella. In general, the ideal cleaning agent shares certain universal characteristics to be low foaming, pH neutral, free rinsing, biodegradable, and highly effective.
Case Medical, a US EPA Safer Choice Partner of the Year formulates, manufactures, and recommends a validated, pH neutral, low foaming, multi-enzymatic detergent, as the protagonist in fighting grime and bioburden. However, even the hero, like Batman has a sidekick that comes to the rescue. So if you have hard water, use a detergent with active chelating agents to follow the enzyme wash step, and provide even better results. Case Medical is here to help you find a cleaner that meets all your specifications and it may only take one.
Join us next week for a new episode of Case Medical's "Soap Opera"
We promise to leave out the drama and only have happy endings. Follow our blogs for more on sustainability and the science of cleaning. Learn how instrument chemistries are formulated for safety, sustainability and effectiveness, and where "water quality" joins the opera.
Then, join us in February for a virtual event on sustainable instrument cleaning with industry and healthcare experts committed to best practices and safer chemical usage.
Then, join us in February for a virtual event on sustainable instrument cleaning with industry and healthcare experts committed to best practices and safer chemical usage.
Visit us at www.casemed.com to learn more about our products and how they can help your facility lighten its impact on the environment for the good of us all.
Kindest Regards,
Marcia Frieze and the Case Medical team
Marcia Frieze and the Case Medical team
