5 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 • M A y 2 0 1 8
S
ome may view pre-cleaning instruments as unglamorous
grunt work, but manually wiping, soaking and hand-
scrubbing the tools of surgery is the key to preventing
biofilm buildup. You've heard it many times before, but it
bears repeating: It's impossible to disinfect or sterilize
inadequately cleaned instruments. Just ask Porter Adventist Hospital.
Biofilm appears to be behind the infection breakout that last month
forced the Denver hospital to suspend all surgeries for nearly a week.
We don't know for certain what caused post-op infections in several
patients who had orthopedic or spine surgery performed at the hospital
over the last couple of years, but a trail of evidence points to improper
instrument cleaning practices and the hidden menace known as biofilm.
Margaret Wasserman, BSN, RN, CNOR | Chicago, Ill.
Combat Biofilm
Tips to prevent bacteria's slimy fortress
from forming on your instruments.
• SLIMY CULPRIT More than 60% of correctly-processed surgical instruments exhibit residual protein soiling.
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
