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Dear all,
I would like to hear how other hospitals are reprocessing the probe used for sentinel node biopsies.
We have been reprocessing ours in Low Temperature Plasma steriliser after we had our probe upgraded. We’ve been placing the probe in a long thin tray and silicon fingered mat underneath it. It just fits in this arrangement and can not roll around too much. We replace the battery after every use to ensure there is enough battery life still in the probe when its used next. We then place the tray into a clear pouch for the sterilising packaging so we can see that the battery still works. Since we’ve been sterilising it in this way we have had many problems and the probe has needed to be repaired 3 times this year. (Previously it had been repaired once a year).
I appreciate that as the manufacturer recommends it can be sterilised in Low Temperature Plasma sterilisers, we have to sterilise it in this way. Unfortunately, our surgeons do not see it that way and I blamed everytime the probe goes off for repair!
Is anyone not sterilising the probe and just placing it in a sterile plastic cover instead?
I am wondering what methods or systems other hospitals are using with their probes. Do you have a select number of staff that reprocess the probe? What are you using to hold and package the probe?
I look forward to hearing from you.Regards
Louise Grant PhD Cand, MCl Sc(Periop)
Project Consultant Reprocessing Compliance
Top End Health Service | Northern Territory Government
Room 221, Building 4, Royal Darwin Hospital,
Rocklands Drive, Tiwi NT 0810 | PO Box 41326 Casuarina NT 0811
t 08 8944 8005 | m 0404 491 183 | e Louise.Grant@nt.gov.au | http://www.health.nt.gov.auTEHS Vision: Building Better Care | Better Health | Better Communities Together
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Hi Louise,
I am involved with two hospitals which also use low temperature sterilisation in CSSD for these probes. These can be packed by any CSSD staff member there. One site has electronic tracking and there are pictures and instructions which come up at packing. The other site has a manual with photos. Both use a long, thin case suitable for low temperature sterilisation.
A sterile cover is not a suitable solution for reprocessing of the probe itself. Note AS/NZS4187 requires that “Cleaning, disinfection or sterilization, as appropriate, of RMDs shall be performed between uses even if a single use sheath/sleeve/protective barrier is used”.
Like you, we change the battery at each instance of packing on the request of the theatres, as the probes are motion activated and are able to be drained through general vibration, handling or the trip down to theatres on the robot. The problem was first noticed when the probes were stored on a compactus which rocked back and forth all day as people stocked the shelves, completely depleting the battery by the time it was due to be used.
Many containers for low temperature sterilisation come with silicone pads with a cut-out or slit into which you can rest a rigid scope, probe or other delicate item. As longs as the pack is handled gently, not tipped or dropped, there should be no internal movement with these in place. I would suggest them over a piece of finger matting in the base of the container. We don’t generally get many repairs of these probes except from intraoperative damage or faults.
Regards,
Andrew Ellis
Sterilising and Reusable Medical Device Reprocessing State Coordinator (Part Time: Monday/Friday)
Infection Control Service | Communicable Disease Control Branch
Health Regulation & Protection
Department for Health and Wellbeing | Government of South Australia
Level 3 | Citi Centre | 11 Hindmarsh Square | Adelaide SA 5000
HCW infection prevention: http://www.sahealth.sa.gov.au/infectionprevention
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Dear all,
I would like to hear how other hospitals are reprocessing the probe used for sentinel node biopsies.
We have been reprocessing ours in Low Temperature Plasma steriliser after we had our probe upgraded. We’ve been placing the probe in a long thin tray and silicon fingered mat underneath it. It just fits in this arrangement and can not roll around too much. We replace the battery after every use to ensure there is enough battery life still in the probe when its used next. We then place the tray into a clear pouch for the sterilising packaging so we can see that the battery still works. Since we’ve been sterilising it in this way we have had many problems and the probe has needed to be repaired 3 times this year. (Previously it had been repaired once a year).
I appreciate that as the manufacturer recommends it can be sterilised in Low Temperature Plasma sterilisers, we have to sterilise it in this way. Unfortunately, our surgeons do not see it that way and I blamed everytime the probe goes off for repair!
Is anyone not sterilising the probe and just placing it in a sterile plastic cover instead?
I am wondering what methods or systems other hospitals are using with their probes. Do you have a select number of staff that reprocess the probe? What are you using to hold and package the probe?
I look forward to hearing from you.Regards
Louise Grant PhD Cand, MCl Sc(Periop)
Project Consultant Reprocessing Compliance
Top End Health Service | Northern Territory Government
Room 221, Building 4, Royal Darwin Hospital,
Rocklands Drive, Tiwi NT 0810 | PO Box 41326 Casuarina NT 0811
t 08 8944 8005 | m 0404 491 183 | e Louise.Grant@nt.gov.au | http://www.health.nt.gov.auTEHS Vision: Building Better Care | Better Health | Better Communities Together
TEHS Values: Trust and Teamwork | Excellence and Equity | Honesty and Accountability | Service and InnovationMESSAGES POSTED TO THIS LIST ARE SOLELY THE OPINION OF THE AUTHOR, AND DO NOT REPRESENT THE OPINION OF ACIPC.
The use of trade/product/commercial brand names through the list is discouraged by ACIPC. If you wish to discuss specific reference to products or services by brand or commercial names, please do this outside the list.
Archive of all messages are available at http://aicalist.org.au/archives – registration and login required.
Replies to this message will be directed back to the list. To create a new message send an email to acipclist@acipc.org.au
To send a message to the list administrator send an email to admin@acipc.org.au
You can unsubscribe manually from this list by sending ‘signoff acipclist’ (without the quotes) to listserv@aicalist.org.au
MESSAGES POSTED TO THIS LIST ARE SOLELY THE OPINION OF THE AUTHOR, AND DO NOT REPRESENT THE OPINION OF ACIPC.
The use of trade/product/commercial brand names through the list is discouraged by ACIPC. If you wish to discuss specific reference to products or services by brand or commercial names, please do this outside the list.
Archive of all messages are available at http://aicalist.org.au/archives – registration and login required.
Replies to this message will be directed back to the list. To create a new message send an email to acipclist@acipc.org.au
To send a message to the list administrator send an email to admin@acipc.org.au
You can unsubscribe manually from this list by sending ‘signoff acipclist’ (without the quotes) to listserv@aicalist.org.au
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