Would your facility benefit from connecting your sterilizers to an instrument tracking system? Many facilities are saying YES!

Hospitals have become increasingly more dependent on information technology in their daily operations and are seeking integration of their information technology (IT) systems. To support these important efforts, the new STERRAD^®  System ITS Interface will allow instrument tracking software technologies to connect to the STERRAD^® NX^® and STERRAD^® 100NX^® Systems to automatically capture electronic cycle receipt documentation and store it within the facility’s IT system. The interface also will allow quick retrieval of sterilization records, if needed. The launch date for STERRAD^®  System ITS Interface is pending.

Stay tuned for more information about this important development in the next issue of Frontiers.

Instruments Added to the STERRAD^® Sterility Guide

More than 1,200 device listings from 13 manufacturers were recently added to the STERRAD^® Sterility Guide—an easy-to-use online tool designed to help identify which devices fall within STERRAD^® Systems cleared claims for sterility. Below are just a few of the device listings added in 2012:

1. Hitachi-Aloka—Ultrasound Probes & Biopsy Cables
2. Intuitive Surgical—da Vinci^® Si Endoscopes
3. KARL STORZ—Semirigid Ureteroscopes
4. Stryker Instruments—Powered Instrument Batteries
5. Verathon Medical—GlideScope

Click here for additional manufacturers and devices.

Joint Commission Addresses Laryngoscope Blade Processing & Storage

In October 2011, The Joint Commission issued a new standards document addressing the processing and storage of laryngoscope blades in perioperative-care settings. The document emphasizes that Joint Commission surveyors will evaluate processes related to laryngoscope blades to ensure that they are safe for use on the next patient.¹

The Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, classifies laryngoscope blades as “semicritical,”² defined as instruments that directly or indirectly contact mucous membranes or nonintact skin. Semicritical instruments should be sterilized or subjected to high-level disinfection before reuse. READ MORE

Stay tuned for more information about an endoscope reprocessing Webinar coming this summer.

Raising the Bar for Endoscope Reprocessing Documentation

Trina Vanguilder, ASP Clinical Education Consultant

More than 20 million GI endoscopic procedures are performed annually in the United States. The latest studies indicate the incidence of pathogens transmitted to be approximately 1 in 1.8 million procedures. In each instance, pathogen transmissions have been associated with a breach in currently accepted cleaning and disinfection guidelines.¹

Due to potential pathogen transmission and related litigation, documentation is a critical component of endoscope reprocessing. Documentation is necessary to assist in an outbreak investigation and to readily identify whether and when an endoscope has been processed. Healthcare providers are taught early in training “if it is not documented, it is not done.” This edict also applies to endoscope reprocessing records.

Currently, there are variations and questions regarding endoscope reprocessing documentation practices across the nation. When to document? What to document? How to document? Who should document? How to maintain the documented record?

Despite these questions, there is one common theme—WE ALL MUST DOCUMENT!

READ MORE

New Testing Logs for CIDEX^® Solutions

Now available—two new versions of CIDEX^® and CIDEX^® OPA Solution testing logs. The logs are formatted to fit in a binder, giving users a new option to record the testing of their solutions. They also include space for quality control testing and temperature information. 

To schedule in-service training for new staff or a refresher training session, contact your ASP representative by calling 888-783-7723 or sending an email to aspserve@aspus.jnj.com.

Click on the following links to access the log sheets from ASPJJ.com:

CIDEX^® OPA Solution
CIDEX^® Solution
CIDEXPLUS^® 28 Day Solution

ASP hosted an educational Webinar titled "Automated Area Decontamination Overview: Advanced Technology to Augment Manual Cleaning." The Webinar features experts discussing the role of the environment in infection prevention and highlights the benefits of automated area decontamination. It features area decontamination best practices and provides an in-depth look at how area decontamination is achieved using the GLOSAIR™ System.

Click here to view the Webinar

Don't Miss the Chance to Experience the GLOSAIR™ System—90-Day Evaluation Available

Inconsistencies in manual cleaning can leave facilities vulnerable to healthcare-associated infections.

ASP’s new GLOSAIR™ Healthcare Environmental Decontamination System, with its hydrogen peroxide technology, safely delivers powerful environmental disinfection for the added protection hospitals need. The system is easy to operate and can be customized to meet a facility’s specific disinfection goals.

ASP is offering a 90-day trial of the GLOSAIR™ 600 System. To find out more about this offer and available purchase discounts, visit www.aspjj.com/glosair90day.

ASP has recently partnered with VIRGO, publisher of Infection Control Today, EndoNurse, and SurgiStrategies, to launch a program focused on the benefits of automated high-level disinfection and terminal sterilization. Included is ASP ECR technology. Data suggest that the potential for build-up of biofilm would likely be reduced compared with manual cleaning, where shortcuts in cleaning are common, because of the efficacy of the ECR cleaning cycle.¹

Also, watch for editorial feature stories about the importance of following best practices for high-level disinfection and sterilization of endoscopes. The program also will feature slideshows, a Webinar, a dedicated Infection Control Today Web page for ASP, and other activities.

The first report, published by Infection Control Today, is titled, “Best Practices for High-Level Disinfection and Sterilization of Endoscopes.” This objective, comprehensive report is available at no cost on the Infection Control Today Web site. Click here to download your copy today.

References
1. Alfa M, DeGagne P, Olson N, Fatima I. EVOTECH^® Endoscope Cleaner and Reprocessor (ECR) simulated-use and clinical-use evaluation of cleaning efficacy. BMC Infectious Diseases. 2010;10:1–14.

Still Have Questions About the SS1E*?

Click here to view our Webisode, “Additional Information for Transitioning from STERIS System 1*”

New Professional Education & Learning Solutions Web Site Launched

ASP supports infection prevention by helping to shape the environment and driving new standards of care through education, engagement, and scientific education. The company’s new Professional Education & Learning Solutions Web Site partners with healthcare professionals, government regulators, standards setters, researchers, and patient advocates to help prevent healthcare-associated infections and promote high-quality outcomes. READ MORE