Medical equipment has to be used safely in order to ensure safety of all medical safety of all medical practitioners, the environment as well as patients. A huge number of medical equipment found in hospitals and other medical facilities are used on a daily basis for different medical purposes. Effective and thorough cleaning of these vital pieces of equipment is necessary for elimination of any possibilities of diseases from spreading from one patient to another.
Decontamination should be done immediately after or before every use. It is also vital for every medical facility to implement a documentation policy to be submitted to all employees when they join the organization. Policy documents rules on how to sterilize effectively all medical equipment.
1. Dry Heat Sterilization
Medical practitioners use two basic types of sterilize which are the oven toaster sterilization and the Cox sterilizer. The Cox dry sterilization method is generally faster than the oven toaster method and takes just a few minutes to complete. In this form of sterilization, extremely high temperatures are use to kill pathogens.
Firstly, the equipment is thoroughly cleaned and decontaminated. Secondly, it is wrapped using foil, placed inside a metal container, and covered with a lid. Placing the equipment in sterilization equipment kills all pathogens hiding inside. It is critical to leave the equipment inside the sterilization device long enough to ensure all pathogens are dead. Keep them away in a safe place once the sterilization process is complete.
2. Steam sterilization
In steam sterilization, the outward surfaces of the medical equipment are cleaned using an appropriate decontaminant. Wrapping the instruments using either cotton or paper before the process starts prevents any form of damage. For best results, steam must be exposed to all surfaces of the equipment. When placing the equipment inside an autoclave, leave enough spaces between different pieces so that each peace can move freely. Reading the manufacturers manual about use of the autoclave is important.
3. Chemical sterilization
This process involves of prepared chemical solutions. Some of the most commonly used chemicals used in sterilization include ethylene oxide, ozone, bleach and hydrogen peroxide. These chemicals are having the power to kill a wide array of pathogens and contain properties, which are potentially harmful to human beings. The equipment that needs to be sterilized is completely submerged into the prepared chemical for a specified time limit until all pathogens dies. After sterilization, rinse the equipment and leave it to dry. However, chemical sterilization is not suitable for highly heat sensitive materials including fiber optics and biological materials.
4. Radiation sterilization
Some of the most common types of radiation sterilization include use of gamma rays, x rays, electron beams and subatomic particles. Gamma rays are appropriate for sterilization of disposable medical supplies such as needles IV sets, as well as syringes. Gamma rays are highly penetrative making them a popular choice for most medical practitioners.
Electronic e-beam processing is another form of radiation sterilization, which has a higher dosage rate compared to both gamma rays and x rays. X rays irradiate huge packages as well as tons of medical devices. They have the ability to penetrate loads of pallets at the same time and record remarkable dose uniformity ratios.
5. Sterile filtration
This method is ideal for fluids, which are easily damaged by heat, and involves use of membrane filters. Integrity tests the filters to ensure that they are functioning properly before and after use.
There is need to overemphasize the need for sterilization since it is the only way of ensuring that lives are not lost due to transmission of infections. Moreover, it ensures utmost safety of medical practitioners working hospitals and other clinical settings from contracting diseases.
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