It is important for any department that reprocesses and utilizes medical instrumentation and devices to be able to identify potential problems with water quality and initiate the measures necessary to ensure safety for patients and instrumentation. Ensuring the recommended water quality for the processing of medical devices requires collaboration and communication between processing staff and those who establish and maintain the water treatment program.

Learning Objectives:

•           Identify the types and causes of instrument damage from water impurities that can impact patient outcomes

•           Name the levels of water quality necessary for specific steps in device cleaning, rinsing, high level disinfection, and steam sterilization

•           Describe the types of water treatment systems used in device processing

Safe medical instrumentation starts with effective cleaning. Learn the secrets to manual and automated cleaning of reusable medical devices.

Objectives:

• Define clean
• List 4 factors that influence cleaning efficacy
• Describe the methods and equipment used to clean medical devices

Walking down the shampoo aisle and knowing the difference between each kind can be confusing. Some promote curls, others straighten – but in a way, they all look the same. Cleaning chemistries for sterile processing can be equally confusing, but there’s more than just a bad hair day on the line when selecting a cleaning chemistry for medical devices. Join Nancy Kaiser, Director of Science and Technology as we peek behind the curtain of chemistry performance and reveal that there so much more to what’s inside the bottle than you may think. 

Rigid container systems allow easy assembly of medical devices, but did you know that they are considered medical devices too? Find what you may be missing when processing these critical devices in your department.

Course Objectives:

• List the standards for container reprocessing 
• Define the reprocessing process of container systems
• Identify critical inspection points and tools      

This instrument looks clean but is it really? Join Tamara as she talks about hidden residual soils and the types of tests that can reveal them.

Objectives:

• List soils found on medical devices
• Identify cleaning tests as defined in ANSI/AAMI ST79
• Establish a quality program for cleaning verification 

Point-of-Use treatment is the foundation for successful cleaning. New procedural demands and intricate medical device designs have driven the ever increasing complexity of Point-of-Use treatment.  

Objectives:

• List the impact of ineffective point-of-use treatment
• Define the key practices to remove gross soil during Point of Use Treatment
• Describe effective preparation techniques to ensure surface moisture retention and device protection at the Point of Use Treatment

Many of today’s complex instruments have difficult to clean crevices and lumens. Ultrasonic cleaning technologies supply the power needed to remove residual soils from these difficult-to-clean areas. Correctly performing ultrasonic cleaning requires a knowledge of the equipment, cleaning chemistries, and techniques to maximize cavitation and effectively remove soils.

Course Objectives:

• Describe how ultrasonic cleaning works
• List factors that hinder or help ultrasonic cleaning
• Define safety considerations when operating ultrasonic cleaners

The Operating Room and Sterile Processing departments have equally important roles for ensuring instruments are properly cared for.  While they work closely, the impact that each of their roles has on one another is not well communicated.  This one-hour webinar will detail the critical contact points and impact of each department with a specific focus on point of use care of surgical instruments. By discussing expectations, best practices, and identifying cross-departmental consequences of inadequate point of use care, learners will be able to implement successful changes at their facilities to improve SPD and OR point of use care of surgical instruments.  

Objectives:

• Identify cross-departmental consequences of SPD and OR actions at point of use
• Discuss expectations, best practices, and identifying cross-departmental consequences of inadequate point of use care
• Discuss critical communication touchpoints related to point of use instrument care for SPD and OR.
• Describe best practices for SPD and OR that encourage success at the point of use.

Proper brush selection is critical to the thorough and effective cleaning of your instruments.  This presentation will discuss the different brush materials available and their characteristics and will also explain topics such as antimicrobial properties of brushes, considerations when selecting a brush, differences between disposable & reusable brushes and cleaning and sterilization of brushes.  Attendees will also learn how to apply industry guidelines and discuss the risk of not following recommended practices and manufacturers IFUs when using brushes.

Objectives:

All reusable devices must be rendered safe for patient use by performing essential steps in the processing cycle. Cleaning is the most critical component in the process, but residual soil found on device surfaces continues to be a very serious problem. Despite their complexity or their use, reusable devices must be safely reprocessed before being used on another patient. 

Course Objectives:

• Define the importance of cleaning reusable devices in clinical practice.
• Describe how cleaning is performed during the reprocessing cycle and how it can be tested.