Objective.
Lancer wanted to improve their monitoring capabilities for decontamination of equipment, in accordance with all global regulations—one of these is the Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) for Washer Disinfectors
"All WDs (washer disinfectors) are subjected to a planned programme of tests (such as HTM ) to validate their performance, that is, to provide evidence that, when operated under the specified conditions, the WD will reliably produce cleaned and disinfected items to the standard required"
Within HTM it states that the WD should be equipped with the means to provide independent monitoring of all cycle variables. More detailed documentation about decontamination of reusable medical equipment can be viewed here -MHRA-MAC HTM
Challenges.
The extreme sensitivity, complexity and high technology found with endoscopes mean that they cannot be steam sterilised or reprocessed like normal surgical instruments. Cleaning and disinfection are delicate operations. After decontamination, the equipment must be handled carefully to minimise any risk of re-contamination. Also, the Washer Disinfector has to be able to accommodate multiple makes and designs of these complex endoscopes
Detailed levels of cleaning have to be monitored and recorded :-
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The correct disinfectant temperature and exposure time per cycle
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That all channels to be irrigated with disinfectant solution do not leak or are not blocked
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The quality of the final rinse water is always in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions
Solution.
Eurotherm 6100A Chart Recorder data monitoring and control solution adhering to HTM and EN ISO 15883 standards for their endoscope washer disinfectors. This enables full monitoring, control, traceability and validation.
Eurotherm Data Acquisition units
T2550 I/O to interface the endoscope patency control into the 6100A chart recorder - our unique offering.
Customer Benefits.
With the T2550 I/O Lancer are unique in being able to interface endoscope patency control into the 6100A chart recorder. That is -
Lancer can record fluid flow testing (patency) within the channels fully compliant to HTM. A flow meter linked to a microprocessor is used to check the flow-rates within the endoscope’s channels throughout the washing and disinfection cycle. Any variation from the values registered for each endoscope during the self-learning cycle automatically triggers an alarm signal. This system can detect, for example, the partial blockage of a channel that might prevent proper washing and disinfection. A unique offering, made possible with the Eurotherm solution which acts as an independent monitor of the main control system.
The Fibro-Cleaner printer prints out a ticket which provides traceability of the following data for each cycle:
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cycle no
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date
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identification no. of the endoscope processed
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program run
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cycle duration
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operator identification no
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time of start and end the cycle etc