Reprocessing Basics
The process that makes reusable medical devices safe for patient use through cleaning, disinfection, and sterilization.
What is reprocessing?
Products such as alcohol and chlorhexidine are examples of these.
What are antiseptics?
Equipment that enters sterile tissue or contacts bone is classified as this.
What is critical equipment?
Indicators that change physically to show exposure to sterilization conditions.
What are chemical indicators?
The Class indicator used as an external indicator on packages.
What is a Class 1 indicator?
This step removes soil and organic material before disinfection or sterilization.
What is cleaning?
These are used on non-living surfaces and equipment.
What are disinfectants?
A speculum is an example of this classification.
What is semi-critical equipment?
The "gold standard" for verifying sterilization effectiveness.
What are biological indicators (spore tests)?
When packaging instruments, the handle should face this edge of the pouch.
What is the sealed edge?
The three major components of reprocessing described in the presentation.
What are cleaning, disinfection, and sterilization?
This level of disinfection is used for semi-critical items such as speculums.
What is high-level disinfection (HLD)?
Equipment that only contacts intact skin falls into this category.
What is non-critical equipment?
A Class 1 chemical indicator is also known as this.
What is a process indicator (external tape)?
Items should never do this inside a pouch.
What is overlap?
The recommended workflow direction in a reprocessing area.
What is dirty-to-clean workflow?
Blood pressure cuffs and stethoscopes typically require this level of disinfection.
What is low-level disinfection (LLD)?
The required reprocessing method for critical equipment.
What is sterilization?
Internal chemical indicators are placed in this location.
Where is inside the package?
These should never be used to seal instrument packages.
What are pins or paper clips?
The correct order of the main reprocessing steps.
What are pre-cleaning, cleaning, post-cleaning, disinfection (if applicable), packaging, sterilization, storage, and transport?
One risk associated with disinfectant wipes if they are not used properly.
What is insufficient contact time or drying out of the wipe?
Semi-critical equipment contacts these structures but does not penetrate them.
What are mucous membranes or non-intact skin?
Biological indicators use these resistant organisms to verify sterilization.
What are bacterial spores?
Writing should not be done on this side of a peel pouch.
What is the paper side?