This is the final article on the subject of process equipment qualification. As a reminder, we qualify process equipment to ensure: The equipment is what was ordered The utilities are sufficient The cycles run as expected The cycles run really do what you need them to do This last point is the subject of
One of the things I get to do for a living is to audit sterile processing department and perioperative sites for good practices. One of the things I do for free is participate in the Kilmer Innovations in Packaging – Last 100 Yards working group, a group that is developing support documents that will, hopefully,
“Uncontrolled variation is the enemy of quality.”—W. Edwards Deming For more than 30 years, industry has been trying to improve the quality of their products and services, and when they meet certain criteria from independent auditors, throwing terms about like ISO 9000, ISO 9001, ISO 13485, cGMP, QSR, and more. What do all of these
There are issues surrounding the processing of N95 and other masks in vaporized hydrogen peroxide (VH2O2) sterilization, which is what is being done in most hospitals. Hydrogen peroxide is referred to as H2O2. Subjects to be covered are: Why are these (normally) single-use devices? What are the differences between doing this in STERRAD and STERIS
At the spring 2019 IAHCSMM Annual Conference & Expo in Anaheim, CA, Beyond Clean hosted a discussion of sterilization process monitoring with chemical indicators, biological indicators, and by parametric release. The first two items are quite familiar to U.S. SPD personnel, being part of everyday life and whose use is defined in AAMI ST79:2017. On
Chemical sterilization indicators (CIs) are vital tools in an SPD, but since the last revision of AAMI/ANSI/ISO 11140-1, there are so many types of chemical indicators. Classes are dead. Long live the types! So what do you do with them? As always, AAMI ST79 is the definitive reference, but take it with a grain
Stains. Corrosion. Instruments worn out before their time. These are problems every sterile processing department experiences and they can be among the greatest causes of stress, be costly to fix, and drag your department into the doldrums of dissatisfaction with your surgical customers. How can you mitigate these issues? The water used in reprocessing
Do you test your washers? AAMI ST79:2017, section 13.2, says, “Mechanical cleaning equipment should be tested upon installation, each day that it is used, and after major repairs.”[1] (I would add that full testing should be done when a new detergent is put into use. They are not all the same.) Okay, now that we’ve determined
