Members Forum
Scissors for removing outer dressings in patients own Homes
With current topic around sustainability we have been asked in IPC about scissors in patients own homes being reused to allow outer dressings to be removed then decontaminated with universal wipe. Whilst reprocessing is not guidance for single use devices, what are other trusts doing. do you advocate decontamination and reuse or dispose. Any suggestions would help
2 Comments
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Sam Lonnen- GHCNFTHere we have the perfect example of what a single use item is. If the item of equipment has the international single use symbol - a '2' in a circle with a diagonal line through it then it cannot be reused. If the single use symbol is not on the item of equipment and it can be effectively cleaned then it can be reused, which appears to be utterly ridiculous. Monika is absolutely right that any equipment used with sterile items must be sterile or it will contaminate the sterile dressing, in this case. However, AND PROVIDED THERE IS NO MIX UP, the use of scissors to cut the outer dressing that are then decontaminated using a Clinell Universal wipe, could be considered rather than using two pairs of single use scissors (one for the outer dressing and then another pair of scissors for the replacement sterile dressing). A standard operating procedure would need to be put together for the decontamination of the outer dressing reusable scissors so that there was a standardised approach to the decontamination process. Check out what the Clinell Universal wipes will actually work effectively against/the wipes efficacy with a range of organisms that is available on the wipes data sheet and on the Clinell website to ensure that in the rare event that a particularly resistant organism is involved the wipe still works and all should be good. We do have to start thinking logically as the world cannot continue to exhaust its limited resources in very low (or no risk) situations - sustainability has to be considered and actions undertaken. I hope this helps.
Where I work we do not advocate the reuse of scissors used to cut outer dressing. This is because there is no guarantee that they are not contaminated with body fluid and a universal wipe wouldn't be sufficient to clean them. Scissors may be reused if they are used to cut for example clean bandage.
Any primary dressing or sterile dressing needs to be cut with single-use sterile scissors as per ANTT.