About the clinic

Decontamination eliminates microorganisms, bacteria and organic matter present on the equipment used before the cleaning stage.To do this, the tools are immersed in a disinfectant solution. This is an essential step to quickly inactivate viruses and infectious agents in order to facilitate cleaning and sterilization.

It is carried out as soon as the instruments leave the decontamination tank. The material can then be handled for cleaning. Cleaning is carried out with a specific detergent in a special machine, which provides additional safety for personnel. In addition, it provides thermal, chemical and mechanical disinfection

Rinsing must be abundant and can be manual or automatic. It removes any residual dirt and detergent. Careful drying is carried out using a single-use rack, drying machine or filtered compressed air. It prevents corrosion and the multiplication of micro-organisms.

All the material to be sterilized, perfectly clean and dry, must be conditioned beforehand. Two types of packaging are possible: sterilization sachets, preferably with a heat-sealed closure, or airtight aluminum or stainless steel boxes fitted with filters to maintain sterility.

The effectiveness of sterilization depends on the quality of the previous steps. Different methods are possible:

● Steam autoclave under pressure, at 134°C for 18 minutes (the most reliable).
● Chemical vapor autoclave. Questionable effectiveness for textiles.
● Dry heat, only for instruments resistant to 180°C (reliability not guaranteed)

After each sterilization cycle, the integrity of the packaging, the absence of moisture in the load, all the bag passage indicators and the physico-chemical indicators must be checked.
Various tests are carried out:

● Biological test by using sterilization indicators every week.
● Vacuum tightness test every week.
● Bowie-Dick test every day.

Anything that cannot be sterilized by heat or immersion must also be cleaned first before being disinfected. The surfaces are cleaned with a wipe impregnated with a bactericidal, fungicidal and virucidal product. An antimicrobial film is then sprayed on before drying without wiping.

After these different steps, a check is carried out to verify that the entire sterilization procedure is running smoothly. This validation is essential to avoid any contamination by microorganisms and to guarantee the safety of both staff and patients.