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O U T P AT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 4
M A T E R I A L S M A N A G E M E N T
ON TRACK Scanning barcoded instrument
sets monitors how often reposables are used.
R
eposables simply aren't made to match the longevity of reusable
instruments, especially in electrosurgical devices subject to the con-
stant delivery of high energy that can cause internal damage or insu-
lation failure, says Vangie Dennis, RN, BSN, CNOR, CMLSO, administrative
director of the Spivey Station Surgery Center in Jonesboro, Ga.
"The biggest issue when using reposables is to be sure you have a process
in place to track uses, so they remain within the manufacturers' labeled
amount," she adds.
Some ultrasonic scalpels have tick marks that will deactivate the device
after the mandated number of uses, says Ms. Dennis, but most high-risk
devices don't have such safeguards in place.
It's labor-intensive and cumbersome to manually track instrument usage,
never mind the human element that can render counts inaccurate. Back
when Ms. Dennis ran a central sterile department at a large hospital that
processed 8,000 cases a month, she installed an electronic documentation
station where instruments were prepped and packed.
Her staff scanned bar-coded instruments during reprocessing to track the
number of sterilizations, but not necessarily specific uses. However, the tally
was close enough to gauge when reposables were approaching the end of
their limited lives.
— Daniel Cook
LIMITED LIFE
Counting Each Use
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