Cleaning And Sterilizing Equipment
4.9 CLEANING AND STERILIZING EQUIPMENT
Cleaning and/or sterilizing instruments reduces the risk of spreading disease by these instruments. The following methods may be used on glass, metal and plastic equipment, but will eventually damage plastic equipment. Note: For some organisms like anthrax spores, the following methods may not be sufficient.
| Step 1: Clean Equipment should be cleaned immediately after use. It may be necessary to scrub with a brush to clean blood from joints and the inner surfaces of the instruments. |
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| Step 2: Disinfect &/or Sterilize |
| DISINFECTION |
| Savlon Method: Use 10 ml Savlon for every liter of water. (1:100 solution). Soak instruments and suture for 20 minutes before using. |
| Chlorine Bleach Method: Use 1-part chlorine to 7 parts of water and soak for 20 minutes. |
| Alcohol/Spirit Method: Soak instruments, suture and cotton wool for about 20 minutes in concentrated (70%) ethyl alcohol or drinking alcohol. |
| STERILIZATION |
| Flaming: Pour alcohol over metal instruments and ignite the alcohol. |
| Steam Method: Metal instruments, nylon suture and cotton wool are placed in a steam sterilizer for 15 minutes. If no steam sterilizer is available, the surgery tray can be placed into a pressure cooker for 15 minutes. |
| Boiling Method: Boil metal or glass instruments for 20 minutes. |
| Step 3. Rinse |
| After disinfecting, all syringes and other instruments should be rinsed with sterile (boiled) water. Do not rinse instruments after sterilizing them. |
| Step 4. Dry |
| After cleaning and disinfecting, sterilized instruments should be covered with a sterilized cloth and allowed to air dry. They should be kept wrapped until just before use. Equipment should be stored in a dry, dust-free place. |
Do not store equipment in disinfectant. Storing instruments in disinfectant solutions will destroy the equipment.
Note: Sometimes equipment such as needles, syringes, scalpel blades, syringes, scissors, or forceps are needed frequently on a busy day. In this case, the equipment can be stored temporarily in a covered glass or metal tray and filled with disinfectant. After the clinic, remove the instruments from the disinfectant, clean them, dry them, and store them properly.
Prepare fresh disinfectant daily and replace solution that becomes dirty or contaminated during use. If equipment is kept in disinfectant often, add sodium-nitrate at a rate of 4 grams per liter to the solution to help protect the instruments.