Healthcare Hygiene magazine August 2020 | Page 30

Benefits Abound with Strong Sterile Processing and Infection Prevention Partnerships By Chris Pennucci, AS, BS, CRCST When a facility’s infection preventionist (IP) walks down the hallway, clipboard in hand, anxiety can skyrocket for the facility’s employees. They may run, hide, or try to stay unnoticed, hoping they will be passed by on that round. It can often feel like the IP is an in-house Joint Commission surveyor, poring over everything you do, just looking for something wrong or out of place. Those in sterile processing (SP) are no exception, and with the number of items they handle and process, and documentation they keep, it may seem the focus is on us even more (which is often the case). It is important to remember, though, that IPs are not our enemy, but rather vigilant members of the team. Their knowledge, focus and support not only lead to better survey experiences, but also to improved quality and safety – all of which will have a positive impact on the sterile processing department (SPD), as well as others’ perception of it. If a contentious relationship exists between IPs and SP professionals, or the two disciplines simply lack a strong partnership, it’s time to work harder to bridge those gaps and view one another as essential contributors to the same goal: keeping patients and employees safe and identifying and fixing problems (or potential problems) before they can negatively impact customer service and patient care. Partnering for quality and safety Improving the relationship between SP professionals and IPs is essential because the two disciplines complement one another in far more ways that they detract, and a strong working partnership can result in better outcomes far more effectively than if each side attempted to work on their own. Without question, one of the best gifts the IP can bring to an SPD is their expertise in controlling or outright preventing the spread of infection. Every SPD should work each day to provide safe and sterile products for the operating room (OR), as well as other end users, and spotting deficiencies in these processes is precisely what IPs are trained to do. Conversely, one of the best gifts that SP professionals can give IPs is keeping them informed on what is going on, and involved in the department’s processes. Even in large facilities, only a handful of IPs are sometimes expected to keep track of every process that occurs with thousands of employees across multiple departments and locations. Also, when SPDs attain new equipment or instruments, it can be invaluable to have the IP in on the discussion of building a process and procedure around them. The IP will then know exactly what the SPD has and how they are being processed, and that insight – coupled with the focused knowledge of the IP — will help SP professionals establish the most robust procedure possible. Even though IPs perform audits and sometimes act like surveyors, they work for the same facility as SP professionals, and are very much in their corner. They want the SPD to succeed. Whenever a negative incident occurs or a process is determined to not be working as well as it should be, it is best to approach the IP about it and make them part of the conversation and solution. Even if everything is going well in the SPD, it is wise to invite the IP to conduct an assessment or departmental walkthrough. While an SP professional’s first thought might be that this is like letting a fox into the henhouse, they must remember there is no “us and them” but rather an interdisciplinary partnership that helps reduce infection risks and drive positive outcomes. It is always better to have the IP find something and help the SPD through it than to have a negative patient impact or a surveyor finding something that could have been addressed in advance. Depending on the issue, then TJC or someone else may find it anyway, but a big step toward mitigating problems and avoiding a citation is showing that the departments worked out the issue and took steps to prevent another occurrence. Another key benefit of this collaboration is that the IP will gain a better understanding of what SP professionals do. IPs will have a general idea, of course; however, not all fully realize the magnitude of what takes place in the SPD on any given day. Educating IPs and showing them what routinely takes place may give them a new understanding and appreciation of how difficult an SP technician’s role can be. It may even lead them to be less critical when a negative incident does occur and, perhaps, more eager to help find an effective solution Other benefits of strong IP/SP relationships SPDs typically have many employees and millions of dollars in equipment, but because the department is not a revenue generator (in most cases), it can be challenging to justify additional expenses for increased instrument inventory, new reprocessing equipment, additional employees, educational resources and the like. IPs can lend a helpful hand in this regard. Often, during discussions with C-level executives, the IP will have a prominent seat at the table. If they have a solid understanding of the SPD’s challenges and needs, they can more effectively present the data, standards, and insights to help build a more solid case for budget increases and capital expenditures. If an old washer is no longer cleaning effectively or reliably, standards are out of date, or instrument inventory falls short to meet increasing surgical case volume, they can share that 30 august 2020 • www.healthcarehygienemagazine.com