Sterile Service Department Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Sterile Service Department - Essay Example The essay "Sterile Service Department" talks about the hospital sterile services department which is operated by a specialised group of staff who provide an essential service by supplying the operation theatres with sterile instruments and departments with specific items required for patient care.After each use, the medical devices undergo various decontamination processes to render them safe and for reuse on patients and for staff handling. Prior to beginning the decontamination, the used medical device is first received by the sterile services department in a collection container specifically meant for this purpose and is subjected to reprocessing. It is essential that the SSD staff need to check the device and to notify the user if any part of the equipment is damaged or missing on receipt. This is followed by a series of interdependent decontamination procedures like cleaning, disinfection and sterilisation to ensure complete elimination of microbes and other contaminants from th e reusable medical device. Cleaning is the first step in decontamination and is an essential prerequisite for the next stage namely disinfection. Cleaning is done either by mechanical means using an automated washer disinfector or an ultrasonic bath comprising warm water rinse, power wash, disinfection using a detergent and a drying phase. The choice of detergent depends on the nature of the equipment and the user follows the instructions of the manufacturer. For delicate or complex medical devices, manual cleaning is normally preferred.