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Infection prevention and control guidelines
10. Reprocessing reusable medical devices
The practice’s infection prevention and control coordinator must ensure the level of processing for specific reusable medical devices and equipment is appropriate to the risk of infection posed by their reuse.
Risk assessment is based on the Spaulding classification1 (Table 10.2. Spaulding classification). The site of use (eg intact or non-intact skin, mucous membranes, sterile sites such as surgical wounds) is a key determinant of the level of risk to the patient.
Table 10.2. Spaulding classification – application to reusable medical devices
Classification
Examples
Process
Storage
Critical
Contact with sterile tissue, sterile cavity, or bloodstream
Surgical instruments used for excision
Podiatry instruments used to penetrate or abrade skin (nail cutters, scalers, files)
Sharps used in neurological testing
Sterilisation by steam under pressure (autoclaving)
Sterility must be maintained
Integrity of the package must be maintained
Must be protected from environmental contamination
Semi-critical
Contact with intact nonsterile mucosa or nonintact skin
Vaginal speculum used for routine cervical sampling
Instruments used in wound care (eg forceps, scalpel handles, scissors)
Sterilisation by steam under pressure
Noncritical
Contact with intact skin
Stethoscope
Plastic* cuff on sphygmomanometer
Pulse oximeter
Auroscope
Cleaning with detergent
or
Cleaning and disinfection with low-level disinfectant
Storage in clean, dry place
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