5 Keys to better infection prevention #3
If you’re like most dentists coming out of the past year and half, you’re likely taking a hard look at how to continue protecting the safety of your patients and staff.
A good place to start? Instrument sterilization.
Did you know that any visible material on your instruments must be removed prior to sterilization? There’s a good reason for that. No matter which agent you use to sterilize and kill the microorganisms on your instruments – steam, unsaturated chemical vapor, or dry heat – none of them will clean off the buildup, rust, or other materials that naturally form on the surface.
When you don’t remove these materials, your instruments may not be sterilized properly, which can lead to cross contamination.
Performing the right steps is critical to your instrument sterilization process. But it’s just as important to ensure your equipment is working properly. Any issues with your ultrasonic cleaner or sterilizer could result in instruments that are not cleaned or sterilized. Be sure follow best practices and routinely monitor your equipment.
How To Make Sure Your Ultrasonic Cleaner Is Working
Like we said earlier, washing your instruments is critical to preventing cross-contamination issues and subsequent infection outbreaks among patients. An ultrasonic cleaner is what most dentist offices use to clean instruments.
How do you monitor how well it’s working?
You’ll want to use a product like our Hu-Friedy Cleaning Monitors (Link here: https://www.hufriedygroup.eu/en/cleaning-care), which contain a non-toxic test soil that mimics the presence of blood and tissue on an instrument surface. When that test soil is fully removed, your cleaning process is effective.
To use this type of test strip, you will insert it in a holder that is then placed in the cleaner before running the clean cycle. You can then review the results of your cleaning monitor to determine if adjustments to your process are needed.
How to Monitor Your Sterilizer
To make sure you’re monitoring how well your sterilizer is working, in order to evaluate your equipment, you should use the following two indicators (Link here: https://www.hufriedygroup.eu/en/sterilization-monitoring):
Chemical Indicators: Every pack that is sterilized should include chemical indicator tapes, strips or tabs to make sure the sterilizing agent has penetrated the package and reached the instruments inside, making it easy to identify processed and unprocessed items. If the internal indicator is not visible from the outside, an exterior chemical indicator should also be placed on the package.
Biological Indicators: This includes weekly spore tests to determine if your sterilizer is killing known highly resistant microorganisms, such as Geobacillus or Bacillus species. It is the most widely accepted monitoring method. But because it’s only done weekly, mechanical and chemical tests should also be run. Also keep in mind, if you’re sterilizing an implantable device, a biological indicator must be used.
By regularly monitoring the equipment in your sterilization area, you get the added assurance that your instrument reprocessing is effective, and your instruments are safe for use with patients.
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.