Page 6
Royal North Shore Hospital Nursing and Midwifery
Infection Prevention and Control
Reprocessing of reusable medical devices (Standard 3: Action 3.14)
The intent of this Standard 3 action is to minimise infection risks to patients and the workforce by having assurance that all reusable equipment, instruments and devices are appropriately reprocessed.
Terminology:
Reprocessing
Activity required to ensure the RMD is safe for its intended use
RMDs
Reusable medical devices
Single Use Items
Symbol found on all single use items Only be used once on one patient
Single Patient Use items
Can be used multiple times on ONLY one patient and then discarded when visibly soiled/ when patient is discharged
Cleaning
Removal of contamination for an item to be used again
Disinfection
Reduction of viable microorganisms to a level to be used again
Sterilisation
A validated process to render a product free from viable microorganisms
Critical Item
A medical item that comes into contact with the vascular system or sterile tissue (eg) Surgical instruments, diagnostic or interventional radiology catheters A medical device that comes into contact with mucous membranes or non-intact skin (eg) mouth shutters, vaginal ultrasound transducers A medical device that only comes into contact with intact skin and not mucous membranes (eg) BP cuffs, thermometers, bedpans Single use sterile or non-sterile material that covers the RMD. Even if the cover/sheath is used the RMD still require reprocessing.
Semi-Critical Item
Non-Critical Item
Covers and Sheaths
What equipment, instruments and devices require reprocessing? All medical equipment, devices and instruments re- quire reprocessing. Some are only single use OR single patient use. The level of reprocessing is depended on the equipment, devices or instrument being used. Most ward based RMD are non-critical and require a clean and disinfection before and after use (ie) with a 2 in 1 wipe – Steri7, Clinell. Devices and instruments that need to be sent to Sterilising Services (SS) should
be rinsed after use to ensure any contaminants are removed, or sent immediately following use to SS. This minimises the risk of drying of contaminants. Storage areas should store clean items (ie) IV poles, pumps, wheelchairs, bed slings, emesis bags, unused sharps bins, incontinence pads.
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online