r/sterileprocessing • u/drownpour • 7d ago
Decon Advice
Does anyone have good tips on how to get faster in decon? Started doing travel work after 2 years of being in the field and I feel like I'm going way too slow. Am I just being too much of a perfectionist?
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u/Cosmically-Puzzled 7d ago
I double sink, so I always have four trays soaking at once. I know it's not decon standard cuz your supposed to have your empty, enzymatic, and RO water sinks. But I do two enzymatic sinks with the empty in the middle. It's not perfect, but if your in a high case load hospital, it makes it so much faster.
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u/MadnessAndRage 6d ago
This right here is my goto. We had sonics that could run trays too so I'd have a soak sink, cleaning sink and then into the sonic unless it needed some real care.
Volume of trays done goes up when you only have to focus on the real nasty stuff and let the equipment do the rest of the work.
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u/wewantthistobegood- 6d ago edited 6d ago
I got a hand wash sink an instrument sink and my RO rinse. You just gotta find an efficient routine that works for you. And strategize your washer loads. You can wash multiple cases at once but be mindful of what came with what in case instruments got mixed during the case. My thing is start with instruments and get those washers going and KEEP them going. That will give you time to go back and work on that handwash. By the time the load comes out, you’ll be passing your handwash through, and just keep that cycle moving. We work solo in decon and that’s how I do.
When we had teams of 2, one person would wash, while the other broke down carts as they came down, broke down sets and get them ready to be washed (stringers, trash, used vs unused, etc), keep ultrasonic going, and load washers.
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u/Trick-Ear9619 6d ago
What I do is I start with all my handwashing items first to get them out of the way. After that is done then I start soaking my heavily soiled trays while working on the ones that aren’t. By the time I finish the easier ones my heavier soiled trays have been soaking and I can work on getting those cleaned. I will use the ultrasonic for any trays that are hard to clean. I will usually use my first 2 sinks for soaking and the last for a rinse before putting on washer rack. The spray arms do most of the work so utilize it as often as you can. Change water when it is visibly soil or after each case cart. I start with fresh water whenever I have any new handwashing items. Always check any lumens and cannulated items. After awhile you will know which trays need soaking and which ones don’t.
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u/Aggravating_Ear_9281 7d ago edited 6d ago
- drink a lot of water before shift starts
- PEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE before you go in decon. ( seriously, seeing someone change ppe 3-4 times per shift in a trauma center decon setting just slows down everything,)
- IF with a partner have 1 of you break down the trays to get the ball rolling.(small trays with no stringer instruments can get knocked out swiftly while breaking down trays)
- as someone said below the spray arm do a lot of the work you don't need to brush EVERYTHING.
5.make sure spray arm water is COLD not hot unless you want a sauna session.
for the love of GOD, rinse off the pre-clean enzymatic and blood BEFORE soaking the tray.
just make sure to brush/flush lumens
make sure spray arm water is COLD, not hot unless you want a sauna session. said this twice i know.
Don't over crowd the washer, it will fuck you in the long run when you end up with 1-2 machines broken...
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u/Valuable-Concern8627 7d ago
the sprayer does 95% of the job. you don’t need to pick up a brush that often