Brian W Skellie – Sharing ideas
When unused sterile instrument sets are returned from the OR or patient floors our policy is to re-sterilize the sets. Since these were unopened we inspect the wrap to be sure there are no holes, replace the tapes and labeling and re-sterilize the item.
An interesting observation on safety issues raised in returning contaminated items such as jewelry to clients, as voiced by this medical professional’s concerns for their patients. It is evident that infection control measures should be carefully considered when previously worn jewelry or other contaminated personal items are to be returned to a customer.
I am an OR nurse and recently started a new job in a prestigious orthopedic hospital. At the request of a surgeon or patient when implants are removed we have been cleaning and flashing them and returning them to the patient in a plastic bag.
[NOTE: Flashing is an outdated term for sterilizing items unwrapped for immediate use]
https://brnskll.com/shares/flash-faq/
Our staff used to label all of our cardiovascular sets and supplies with a red Sharpie brand permanent marker and we would use a black Sharpie for all other items. This provided a quick and easy method to visually identify these special critical items. The labeling was restricted to the autoclave tape on the outside of wrapped packages and the film side of peel pouches.
Equipment must be cleaned before sterilization. Heat fixes blood fibrin to instrument surfaces, and should not be used prior to cleaning. Reprocessing should be done according to evidence based scientific recommendations.
“To wipe the slate clean is to forget all past problems or mistakes and start something again. That is what wiping a surface is all about – to get rid of the past and start anew.” S.M.Kovach
For the modern body artist, OPTIM offers a number of advantages for cleaning and thorough and safe disinfection in one minute for:
A first glimpse at the new fourth generation of the fast STATIM 2000 autoclave
Links: Some educational infection prevention materials for body artists
This could be due to a number of sources of irritation or infection that can result in overgrowth of scar tissue when the healing process is disrupted. There may be a single, simple solution though it commonly may take a combination of protective measures to help this turn out well.
