North Texas Dentistry Volume 7 Issue 2 NTD 2017 ISSUE 2 DE | Page 25
compliance
Testing Your Autoclave
Isn’t Optional
HAVE YOU COMPLETED SPORE TESTING RECENTLY?
Untested autoclaves can lead to sick patients. They also leave a
practice owner open to stiff fines, even suspension of his or
her license.
Texas State Board Rule 108.24 states that “sterilization
equipment and its adequacy shall be tested and veri-
fied in accord with the American Dental Association
recommendations.”
Since Texas regulations recognize ADA recommendations as
State guidelines, testing isn’t an optional exercise. But we’ve
inspected several practices that were not adhering to ADA guide-
lines. Here are two tips for spore testing compliance:
1 Test weekly — without fail.
Both ADA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
recommend autoclave spore testing at weekly intervals.
Staying in compliance with spore testing requirements can
especially be a challenge if your staff skips a week due to vaca-
tions or schedule changes.
If the staff member in charge of spore testing drops the ball, how
can you avoid long gaps that can make your office non-compliant?
n Set a reminder alert in your office’s computer calendar.
n Place a reminder next to the sterilizer to run a weekly
spore test.
n Give testing responsibility to two employees, instead of one.
2 Keep records for three years.
Has your office completed spore tests, but neglected to send the
specimens in to be examined? Or maybe your office doesn’t keep
records of the test results.
Smart Training strongly recommends that records be kept for a
minimum of three years; a recommendation based on the high-
est standards and absence of clear guidance from Texas State
Board of Dental Examiners.
Several testing companies supply biological indicators that
are returned to the company’s lab to determine if a practice’s
autoclave is functioning properly. (TDA Perks partner OSHA
Review is one.)
by Lee Slaton
There are also several companies that provide testing kits that
allow practices to test and see results onsite in their own offices.
If administered in a timely and proper way, either spore testing
method ensures compliance with Texas regulations.
Lee Slaton is Vice-President of Healthcare with
Smart Training, the TDA’s OSHA and HIPAA Com-
pliance partner. Smart Training, a Texas-based com-
pany, has been providing OSHA, HIPAA, and
Training solutions for over 25 years. They offer the
industry’s only written guarantee against OSHA fines,
which includes OSHA representation. Slaton’s team
of Compliance Advisors has inspected hundreds of
Texas dental practices, with the mission of helping practices correct deficien-
cies before they turn into fines totaling thousands of dollars.
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