Menu
Appropriately arranged in the shuttle trolley, the closed containers with used instruments are transported from the surgical departments to the sterilization unit by a vehicle. Once arrived in the sterilization unit, the instruments, the metal baskets and the containers in which they are packed, go through series of processes before they get to the surgical theaters again.
The data from the tracking documentation is entered in the evidence tracking system.
The containers with instruments are transferred to the Red Room, they are opened, they are washed and disinfected separately from the surgical instruments. Afterwards, they go to a clean area through the “pass box” zone. All the instruments in the baskets are first counted, in order to check if something is missing. Every instrument is hand-cleaned and brushed against possible residue from the surgery. The instruments are returned in the baskets in order to read the information about the type and the exact number of instruments in every basket. Every basket has a bar code, connected with the other baskets and containers. The baskets with instruments are lined up on the shelf which is placed in a special machine for automatic cleaning and disinfection.
A process of automatic washing and drying in the machine is taking place, with a two-sided door for use. Once the process is finished, it is taken out from the other side, into a room physically separated from the Red Room. Depending on the cycle, this process lasts about one hour.
The shelves with metal baskets are taken out of the machine in the Blue Room. An operator checks the instruments one by one, under a magnifying glass. The functionality of every instrument is being checked. After usage, a specific lubrification is performed. After the detailed check, the instruments are placed in a metal basket, they are being counted and compared with the information registered in the control system. The containers are placed on a shelf which is placed in a machine for steam sterilization.
In this machine with two-sided doors for use, the sets are being sterilized, on 121 or 134 degrees Celsius. Shortening of the cycle is NOT allowed according to international standards! Every container has an indicator, which during the opening, and all the way to the autoclaving has red color. Once the container passes the autoclaving procedure and gets sealed, the color of the indicator changes back to green.
After this process ends, the operator checks if the cycle went successfully. The indicator of the containers has to be in green color. Afterwards, the containers are measured and this way, according to the weight before and after the sterilization, it is checked if there is any moisture left in the container itself. After both controls, the set is ready for delivery together with the tracking documentation.
In the Exit zone, through a two-sided counter, the sterile containers are taken over from the Green Room, they are arranged in the shuttle trolley which is completely physically closed.
The shuttle trolleys are transported from the sterilization unit to the surgical departments. The mixing of clean and unclean shuttle trolleys in the same vehicle is prohibited!