place in front of sinks
or washers to prevent
slips and falls."
4. Stop sharps
injuries
There are proven
ways to reduce the
risks of sticks and
cuts in the sterile pro-
cessing department,
including implement-
ing sharps separation
policies.
"In many facilities,
sharps need to be sep-
arated from other
used instruments and
placed in their own
basin," says Ms. Lind.
"That takes away the
danger of reaching
your hand into a basin full of instruments when you don't know what
you're reaching for."
But Ms. Lind sees room for improvement here, too. Facilities fall
short with sharps separation policies because the policies aren't broad
enough.
"We tend to look at sharps solely as instruments like osteotomes
and scissors," says Ms. Lind. "Even though instruments like skin
hooks and retractors might not fall into an obvious sharps instrument
O C T O B E R 2 0 1 9 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 6 9
• NOT OPTIONAL Make it clear to sterile processing staff members that proper
PPE must be worn at all times.
