sterile processing
sterile processing
By Julie E. Williamson
IPs Who Visit SPDs Regularly Can Improve Quality and Safety
Although infection preventionists( IPs) and sterile processing( SP) professionals do not share the same departmental walls, they are nonetheless vital teammates who should work together regularly to ensure standards-based processes, policies and best practices are consistently followed, and challenges are proactively addressed. While such collaborative interdisciplinary relationships are not always prioritized in some healthcare facilities, the Healthcare Sterile Processing Association( HSPA) is pleased to see positive changes on the IP-SP collaborative front.
During the 2025 HSPA annual conference last month, numerous IPs and executive-level professionals were in attendance, underscoring their commitment to learning more about SP-related topics, advancements and ongoing obstacles regarding instrument design, limited staffing and capital budgets, instructions for use( IFU) concerns, and more. One IP, a first-time attendee,
Although infection preventionists( IPs) and sterile processing( SP) professionals do not share the same departmental walls, they are nonetheless vital teammates who should work together regularly to ensure standards-based processes, policies and best practices are consistently followed, and challenges are proactively addressed.” shared with HSPA staff that she“ had no idea the problems SPDs face” and vowed to step up her support immediately upon returning to her facility. She shared that she had“ about bi-monthly” meetings with the first and second shift managers but planned to engage with SP leaders and technicians across all shifts at least monthly to ensure their voices are heard.“ I now know more questions to ask, and I want to really listen to what is causing them headaches and making it difficult for them to do their jobs consistently, effectively and safely,” she said.“ The more I know, the better I can advocate for them.”
Other IPs and managers can attest to the benefits of strengthened departmental partnerships, and that message resonated during numerous educational sessions at the HSPA conference. A primary example was the opening session on April 27. The session,“ Everyone’ s Dirty Little Secret,” was presented by microbiologist Cori Ofstead, MSPH, president and CEO of Ofstead & Associates, Brandon Gantt, DHSc, CRCST, CHL, CER, LSSGBH, manager of SPD education and training at Emory Healthcare, and Jill Holdsworth, MS, EMT, CRCST, manager of infection prevention at Emory. The trio shared outcomes from their eye-opening Lumens 2.0 study published in the American Journal of Infection Control, which highlighted challenges with device design and cleaning IFU, as well as the importance of using borescopes and swabs to assess device cleanliness. 1
For the study, the team used a borescope to inspect lumened instruments used for orthopedic, neurologic and ear, nose and throat( ENT) procedures. When visible debris was identified, the device was recleaned up to three times to assess
the cleaning effectiveness. In all, there were 117 inspections involving 40 unique instruments and 77 re-inspections. Debris, discoloration or residues were found inside every device cleaned and inspected, and rust was present in 95 % of them. Beyond that, visible soil remained in most lumens after recleaning, and lint or brush fragments were still visible upon repeat inspection. 1
Alarming and discouraging observations aside, Ofstead, Gantt and Holdsworth stress that opportunities exist to make powerful improvements— among them interdisciplinary collaboration and the importance of borescope inspection and the pursuit of solutions to address challenges with instrument design and IFU. What’ s more, their Lumens 2.0 study serves as a potent reminder of the benefits of having an IP working alongside SP professionals to witness the challenges firsthand— and in the case of Holdsworth, by participating in enhanced visual inspection and other essential steps.
“ As an IP, using a horoscope is not something I had done before or knew how to do before I started working with Cori Ofstead and her team,” Holdsworth told HSPA.“ I was so excited to work on this project with our local team so we could learn and grow from our findings.”
Gantt acknowledged the significant benefits of having IP involvement in the process. He noted that using a borescope gave valuable insight into the challenges of biofilm formation, debris retention and cleaning difficulties associated with lumened devices. What’ s more, he explained that Holdsworth’ s involvement would help educate SP and clinical staff about the risks associated with insufficient cleaning, fostering a culture of accountability and compliance with reprocessing guidelines.
Above all, he said the SP-IP collaboration highlights the correlation between inadequate instrument reprocessing and the risk of healthcare-associated infections.“ Infection prevention and sterile processing are inextricably linked,” reminded Gantt, adding that collaboration should be a natural and regular occurrence.
Other studies support that notion. A quality improvement project initiated in 2015, for example, involved the development of an auditing tool, IP-provided education, and participation in SPD meetings to improve IP knowledge and understanding of SP-related processes and compliance with infection control measures. 2 The researchers saw a correlation between increasing SPD audit scores and a decline in bioburden events from a yearly average of 3.29 events per 1,000 procedures in 2015 to 1.15 events per 1,000 procedures in 2018.
The project demonstrated how collaboration between IP and SP departments can improve compliance and patient safety, they noted.
Julie E. Williamson is director of communications at the Healthcare Sterile Processing Association( HSPA) and serves as editor-in-chief of HSPA’ s publication, PROCESS magazine.
References:
1. Ofstead CL, Smart AG, Holdsworth JE, Gantt BM, Lamb LA, Bush KM.“ Unseen threats: Lumens 2.0 study reveals the hidden challenges of cleaning lumened surgical instruments. AJIC. Vol. 53, Issue 5. Pp. 537 – 547. May 2025. https:// www. ajicjournal. org / article / S0196-6553( 25) 00057-4 / fulltext.
2. Evashwick E, Cumplido S, Eleby G, Washington T, Krishna S, et al.“ A Tale of Two Departments: How Collaboration Between Infection Prevention and Sterile Processing Departments Can Improve Patient Safety.” AJIC. Vol. 47, Issue 6, Supplement. Page S12. June 2019. A Tale of Two Departments: How Collaboration Between Infection Prevention and Sterile Processing Departments Can Improve Patient Safety- American Journal of Infection Control
24 • www. healthcarehygienemagazine. com • may-june 2025