5 Keys to better infection prevention #1

At this point, you know that sharps injuries are bad. But, you likely don’t know how often they actually happen.

It’s common for a sharps injury to occur when transporting or reprocessing contaminated instruments. When evaluating the processes in your facility, use these questions to identify how you can improve safety.

1. How are you transporting?

To reprocess your instruments, they first need to get to the sterilization center. So how does that happen? If your team carries instruments loose on a tray, that’s a problem. One misstep, bump, or abrupt stop could lead to a sharps injury. That’s why National and International Guidelines recommend the use of a container that is closeable, constructed to contain all contents without exposure, leakproof on the sides and bottom, puncture resistant, and properly labeled or color coded. This keeps the contaminated instruments contained so they can be moved safely.

2. What are you wearing?

Wearing exam gloves while handling contaminated instruments is a bad idea. Exam gloves are too thin and don’t provide your team with the protection they need. Instead, they need to wear utility gloves. They feel different than exam gloves but that’s by design. The extra thickness resists certain chemicals* better than latex gloves** and allows superior resistance to puncture for improved protection. That being said, it’s still important to have tactile sensitivity when wearing utility gloves, so your team needs to wear a pair that fits properly. (see our Lilac Gloves) 

*Please refer to packaging instructions for the penetration times of chemicals tested
** CDC Chart (http://bit.ly/gloveschart)

3. How often are instruments handled?

Every time your team touches a contaminated instrument – whether hand scrubbing, rinsing, sorting, pouching, etc. – there’s a risk of a sharps injury. One way to reduce that risk is by minimizing their contact. That’s where instrument management can come in. There are many benefits to this type of system, most notably that it enables your team to go from chairside to cleaning to sterilization to storage without touching contaminated instruments. Less exposure means less risk of a sharps injury.

Whether reported or not, sharps injuries are a problem. But they are preventable. With these three questions, you can determine the steps you need to take to create a safer environment in your facility.

Click here to contact us for a personal consultation to learn how Circle of Protection can prevent the spread of disease and improve the safety of your practice.