are aware of the
problem, and
most of them
do their best to
use plastics that
will withstand
common clean-
ers. That hav-
ing been said,
there is no uni-
versal solution
— no single
cleaner consid-
ered safe for all plastics, and no single plastic resistant to all cleaners.
As a result, hospitals and surgery centers need to have multiple clean-
ers available, and it can be difficult for staff to apply the necessary
time and conscientiousness to make sure they're using the right clean-
er on the right piece of equipment.
Here's an example: There's a popular disinfectant wipe that is safe
to use on many devices that we'll call Product X. While Product X
appears on the "compatible cleaners" list of some infusion pumps, it
appears on the "non-approved cleaning agents" list of some common-
ly used ear thermometers. To add even more confusion, the company
that owns Product X has another disinfectant wipe, Product X1, with
a similar-sounding name that contains a more aggressive formula to
deliver a faster kill time. Many facilities switched from X to X1
because of the faster kill time, but most likely never thought about X1
having a different compatibility than X. Robotic components, ultra-
sound equipment, vital-signs monitors and electrocardiography
M A R C H 2 0 1 7 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 2 7
• SAFE TO USE? Give staff a thorough review of cleaning proce-
dures for each piece of equipment, including a list of compatible
and incompatible cleaners, which manufacturers can provide.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN
