ScanCARE Blog

Posts about Surgical Instruments (2):

What is the real cost of surgical Instrument Laser Etching?

Michael Stanton 02-Aug-2016 07:00:00
What is the real cost of surgical Instrument Laser Etching?

In my blog post titled "What you need to know about Surgical Instrument Direct Part Marking (DPM)" I wrote about the laser etching process. The post discusses what  equipment is required for etching your instruments and the logistic aspects of  the process as well as some of its positives and shortcomings. Today I will revisit some of those concepts but with a wider context as to why you need to etch your instruments.

Generally CSSD managers understand the benefits of laser etching, so today we will see why it’s not already done for you when you buy an instrument.

Staff privileges and security in surgical instrument tracking systems

Michael Stanton 29-Jun-2016 10:28:56
Staff privileges and security in surgical instrument tracking systems

Staff privileges and system security are two common features of surgical instrument tracking systems that we are often asked about.

Hourly rates or process costing information, for example, is usually considered confidential and for this reason CSSD and theatre managers need to be able to regulate who can and who cannot access this level of detail.

Network IT adminstrators too, have an interest in this topic as they need to ascertain the level of security provided by the tracking application.

My experience is that the needs of clinical managers and those of network IT administrators don’t always align. Individual stakeholder requirements warrant careful consideration to achieve successful and sustainable outcomes for all concerned.

This post discusses how to navigate the area of staff privileges and security to meet and satisfy all stakeholders' needs. 

Short on time? Why not download our handy 1 page User Roles Chart?

 

How to prepare for AS4187 product families compliance deadline

Michael Stanton 21-Jun-2016 07:30:00
How to prepare for AS4187 product families compliance deadline

With the deadline for implementation of AS4187 2014 coming up fast, I thought that it may be worthwhile to take another look at product families.

There seems to be a lot of interest in AS4187 and product families and my blog of August 2015 is by far our most read page on our website. The helpful categorisation guide gets downloaded several times each week.

Setting up a surgical asset tracking system in a confined space

Michael Stanton 08-Apr-2016 07:00:00

dental_surgery.jpegComplying with Australian standards AS4187 or AS4815 can be a difficult task for any health care facility, but for office based health care facilities, physical space limitations can make it even more difficult. Finding space to wash, wrap and sterilize surgical instruments can be tricky for the smaller facilities and bench space is typically limited so finding space to put things can be a challenge.

Quick Guide to assembling a dental tray  [AS4187 product families]

Michael Stanton 01-Mar-2016 15:23:00
Quick Guide to assembling a dental tray  [AS4187 product families]

The latest version of AS/NZS 4187 released on the 15th December 2014  brought some very significant changes to the previous standard. One of the most significant changes is the standards reference to Product Families.

In my blog "Here's how to make sense of the AS4187 categorisation of instrument product families", I provided an overview of ISO/TS 17665-3:2013 - Sterilization of health care products - Moist heat - Part 3: Guidance on the designation of a medical device to a product family and processing category for steam sterilization.

In today's post I will get into the specifics of how to apply the standard to a dental assessment tray.

What you need to know about Surgical Instrument Marking

Michael Stanton 15-Dec-2015 07:00:00
What you need to know about Surgical Instrument Marking

Introduction


Just about everyone these days wants their surgical instruments etched with 2D data matrix barcodes. There are plenty of benefits to be gained from doing so.

It speeds up the instrument assembly process and reduces the need for your people to memorise instrument names. The assembly process becomes very simple. Team members scan a barcode on an instrument and the computer tells them if it’s the right one or not and when the tray is complete.