In medical institutions, in order to prevent the spread of infection, as well as in accordance with sanitary and hygienic standards, all instruments are sterilized. Before this, the employees of the junior medical staff perform pre-sterilization cleaning of medical devices. Consider what it is, how it is performed.
Why do you need pre-sterilization cleaning
The purpose of this procedure is to eliminate various contaminants and protein particles that remain on the instruments during various medical interventions. This is necessary in order to prevent contamination and equipment failure. This procedure is also needed to ensure high quality sterilization of instruments in autoclaves. To remove all pollution, you need to perform a number of actions.
There are pre-sterilization cleaning steps strictly prescribed in sanitary standards, the sequential implementation of which in a short time allowsremove as much as possible all protein contamination.
What steps does the process consist of
The first step in the treatment of medical instruments is their disinfection, followed by rinsing to remove all traces of the disinfectant. Sterilization of instruments is effective only if their preparation before immersion in the autoclave is carried out in compliance with all necessary standards. Therefore, employees (junior medical staff) should treat this work very responsibly. Currently, the following stages of pre-sterilization cleaning are distinguished:
- Washing after disinfection.
- Soaking.
- Wash in detergent solution.
- Rinsing with normal running water.
- Rinsing with distilled water.
- Hot air dry.
- Quality control.
To determine how well the processing of medical instruments was performed, laboratory tests help: azopyramic and phenolphthalein. At the same time, the first allows you to identify the remains of blood on medical dishes, and the second makes it possible to find out how well the cleaning agents were washed off.
Rinse and soak
After disinfection, performed by both chemical and physical methods, the medical devices are washed. At this stage of pre-sterilization cleaning, the complete elimination of residues and the smell of disinfectants is achieved. Forthis medical equipment is placed under running water and rinsed for approximately 30 seconds.
Pre-sterilization cleaning of medical devices is carried out using special washing solutions, in which all equipment is completely immersed and kept in the range from 15 to 60 minutes. A mixture of 6% hydrogen peroxide, water and synthetic detergent is often used for this.
In order for the soaking to be as effective as possible and lead to the desired result in a short time, the washing solution is additionally heated to a temperature of 40 to 50 degrees Celsius. When soaking medical instruments, it is especially important that all cavities and channels are completely filled with the solution. To do this, the equipment is supplied for cleaning only disassembled.
Wash
All medical instruments are washed in the solutions in which they were pre-soaked. For this, special brushes, brushes or pre-made cotton swabs are used. At this stage of pre-sterilization cleaning, the processing of each instrument or its component part is given for 30 seconds. With the manual method, it is not allowed to use brushes for washing devices and fixtures, the design of which contains fragile elements made of rubber and other materials.
Pre-sterilization treatment of medical devices in special washing machines is more preferable than by hand. Automatic sterilization modes eliminate the possibilityinfection of the staff of the medical facility, as well as provide fast and high-quality cleaning. In addition, with this method, the total time spent by instruments in disinfectant solutions is reduced. The entire processing process becomes much less labor intensive for the staff.
Rinsing
Equally important is the stage of rinsing the instruments. The need for this is due to the use of a large number of disinfectants in the process of washing equipment. At this stage of pre-sterilization cleaning, it is important to completely remove the remnants of all used solutions from the surfaces of medical instruments.
Maximum effectively and quickly to cope with this task allows rinsing the equipment under running water. Depending on which disinfectant was used during the washing process, the time allotted for rinsing can vary from 30 seconds to 10 minutes. After processing the instruments under running water, they must be additionally rinsed and distilled. Perform this procedure for a short time. This is necessary so that during the drying and sterilization process, s alts that are always present in ordinary water do not settle on the surfaces of the equipment.
Drying
Modern autoclaves have such sterilization modes that achieve complete disinfection of medical instruments. However, they cannot be placed in the unit with residual water. Therefore, disinfection of medical devices is also necessary.includes drying.
So that this procedure does not take much time, it is carried out not in the air, but in special drying cabinets. Pre-washed medical instruments are placed in them and kept at a temperature of 85 ºС until the moisture disappears completely. Hot air treatment in drying cabinets greatly simplifies the process of medical pre-sterilization cleaning, since it is performed automatically. This eliminates the need for any action by the medical staff.
Quality control
To determine how well all stages of pre-sterilization cleaning were performed, azopyram and phenolphthalein tests are carried out.
Azo pyramic test is designed to detect incomplete removal of contaminants in the form of blood from the surfaces of medical instruments. For this, a freshly prepared solution of isopyram is used. When applied to blood-stained surfaces, it gives a purple coloration.
A phenolphthalein test is performed to determine whether detergents and disinfectants are left on the surfaces of medical instruments. If, as a result of these two studies, at least one sample gives a positive result, the entire cleaning procedure is carried out again. Actions at each stage must be performed with the highest quality, because the he alth of patients, and sometimes their lives, depends on it.
We told how pre-sterilization cleaning of medical instruments is carried out.
