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Properly maintaining and repairing surgical instruments has far reaching implications beyond the instruments themselves, from the financial pressures to protect a hospital's equipment investment, to the ability to serve the operating room (OR) with properly functioning instruments when needed, to protecting patients from healthcare acquired infections (HAIs) and other harm that can result from improper maintenance and repairs.
At the same time, the ability for a hospital to maintain the quality of its surgical instrumentation hinges on many different factors, including staff education and training, communication between OR and central sterile/ sterile processing department (CS/SPD) staff, adherence to manufacturers' instructions for use (IFUs) and the competency and availability of outside resources (OEMs and third-party repair services).
In this month's article, we present insights from CS/SPD professionals, instrument manufacturers, repair service providers and others in the industry on the latest trends in instrument maintenance and tips for establishing processes and selecting services that are right for your organization.
How instrument maintenance is evolving
As surgical instruments evolve to meet the more complex and demanding needs of the OR, maintenance of these items must advance as well. Maintenance programs must take into account the broader range of instrumentation used in today's surgical procedures and manufacturers' requirements for care and handling as defined in their IFUs.
"Overall the industry is making great strides to raise awareness regarding instrument maintenance," said Marcus Super, Director of InstruSafe Sales and Marketing at Summit Medical. "I believe part of this is being driven by the complexity of 21s1century surgical instrumentation and adverse events that have been popping up in the news lately."
While surgical procedures Marcus Super are growing in both volume and scope, healthcare facilities are feeling the pressure to cut costs and operate more efficiently. One way they can do this is to proactively maintain their surgical instrument inventory, which represents a significant capital investment for most institutions. Proper instrument maintenance also contributes to better and safer patient care by ensuring surgeons have the highest quality equipment in their hands for every procedure.
"The financial challenges of providing healthcare along with the overriding goal of keeping patients safe when having surgery have encouraged a greater focus on preserving resources and ensuring that instruments used in surgery are functioning as they...