Outpatient Surgery Magazine, providing current information on Surgical Services, Surgical Facility Administration, Outpatient Surgery News and Trends, OR Excellence and more.
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say this only because they last for 15 or 20 years and, therefore, elimi- nate the waste of single-use wrap — something that's only going to become more important moving forward. I say this because certain sealed containers can help you save on resources as well. Consider steam sterilization. When your equipment (containerized or not) goes through this process, it usually needs to undergo expo- sure time (in which it's doused with steam), and dry time (in which the instruments are cooled, so condensation doesn't build after hit- ting the outside air). But with the sealed container we use, dry time isn't required at all, so you end up saving on electricity. Something else containers can save you: time. While your reprocessing techs have to spend the same amount of time inspecting instruments and reading count sheets to determine which instruments are required for a specific tray, wrapping that tray involves tucking and taping. You're looking at 90 seconds for full assembly. With a sealed container, all you need to do is close a lid and lock — 15 or 20 seconds. It may not sound like that big of a difference, but this adds up over the course of a 8-hour shift. Some people will balk at this, because they're really, really good at wrapping. But I'd invite them to stand side by side with a peer assem- bling a container any day. For these reasons, the higher upfront cost of a container is worth it. Depending on size, they can range from $150 to $3,000, and yes, that's a lot. But in the long run, what you're paying for is better efficiency, and it's hard to put a price on that. The bottom line OK, I'll admit it — even I'm on Team Wrap sometimes. Take the stor- age issue, for example. Wrap takes up less real estate, no way around it. It's a major reason more facilities aren't becoming 100% sealed con- tainer. Also, you need to be mindful of size — if you don't pick a 1 1 4 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • J a n u a r y 2 0 1 7