Future-proof your Sterile Processing Department

An increasing number of healthcare procedures are occurring in outpatient, ambulatory care.Processing surgical instruments is at the heart of every surgery center. The Sterile Processing Technicians are at the helm of driving patient care during surgery by being responsible for cleaning, decontaminating, processing, sterilizing, and managing the necessary instruments and equipment. Their dedication and diligence can often be challenged when facilities aren’t efficiently equipped with the appropriate hardware and tools that allow for a scalable workload.

Developing methods to minimize shocks and stresses of foreseeable future events is important. 

Is your business or team growing, adding procedures, driving efficiencies or investing in robotics? Get a consultation today from an ASP expert on how ASP technology can help future-proof your SPD.

ASP Recommendations

Given overwhelming evidence of potential points of failure in endoscope reprocessing, ASP’s recommendation is simple:

1

What Can be sterilized should be sterilized

2

What cannot be sterilized should be reprocessed in an advanced AER/ECR*

 

 

This aligns with FDA recommendations. U.S. Food and Drug Administration guidance document Reprocessing Medical Devices in Health Care Settings: Validation Methods and Labeling. Guidance for Industry and Food and Drug Administration Staff states, “Users should be instructed to thoroughly clean [semi-critical devices] and then reprocess them by sterilization. If the device design does not permit sterilization (e.g., device materials cannot withstand sterilization), then high level disinfection should be used.”2

ASP Products work together to work for you

The STERRAD Systems deliver sterility assurance through an upgradeable platform to adapt to the upcoming demands of sterile processing to help maximize your clinical, financial, and operational outcomes as medical device designs and guidelines evolve over time.

  • STERRAD Systems are the only upgradable platform making new cycles available for purchase as a software upgrade - without the need to buy a new machine.

  • STERRAD NX System with ALLClear Technology is one of the latest releases from the STERRAD® Systems platform and is the culmination of over 25 years of innovation in hydrogen peroxide gas plasma (HPGP) sterilization technology.

  • STERRAD 100NX System with ALLClear Technology includes a 24-minute EXPRESS Cycle, which is compatible with da Vinci® endoscopes, rigid and semi-rigid endoscopes without lumens and rechargeable batteries.

  • Increase compliance with ALLClearTechnology which minimizes cycle cancellations, ASP ACCESS Technology and ITS that provides audit-ready data, plus intuitive on-screen guides.

  • STERRAD Systems:

    • have over 22,000 full medical device manufacturer (MDM) endorsements and growing

    • have integrated quality systems to enhance compliance to guidelines and hospital policies and is ready to integrate with ASP ACCESS Technology to automate your documentation of the sterile process

    • can sterilize a wide variety of instrument materials to help your SPD capabilities grow as you add new procedures

    • reduce consumable waste with less canceled cycles thanks to ALLClear Technology

Here are some examples of releases that helped ASP customers stay current without purchasing a whole-new system:

Web_STERRAD-NX
2005

STERRAD NX System launched with 2 cycles: Standard & Advanced

Web_100NX-Legacy
2007

STERRAD 100NX System launched with 2 cycles: Standard & Flex

2011

STERRAD 100NX System EXPRESS Cycle; compatible with the Intuitive Surgical® da Vinci® Surgical Endoscope

2012

STERRAD 100NX System DUO Cycle; validated for flexible scopes & cameras

NX100-AND-NX-toghther
2016

STERRAD NX System with ALLClear Technology

STERRAD 100NX System with ALLClear Technology


Software upgrade to reduce cycle cancellations, connect to ASP ACCESS Technology and ITS, plus on-screen guides to increase compliance

2005

STERRAD NX System launched with 2 cycles: Standard & Advanced

 
2007

STERRAD 100NX System launched with 2 cycles: Standard & Flex

2011

STERRAD 100NX System EXPRESS Cycle; compatible with the Intuitive Surgical® da Vinci® Surgical Endoscope

 
2012

STERRAD 100NX System DUO Cycle; validated for flexible scopes & cameras

2016

STERRAD NX System with ALLClear Technology

STERRAD 100NX System with ALLClear Technology


Software upgrade to reduce cycle cancellations, connect to ASP ACCESS Technology and ITS, plus on-screen guides to increase compliance

References

  1. Kumar, P., & Parthasarathy, R. (2021, July 1). Walking out of the hospital: The continued rise of ambulatory care and how to take advantage of it. McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/healthcare-systems-and-services/our-insights/walking-out-of-the-hospital-the-continued-rise-of-ambulatory-care-and-how-to-take-advantage-of-it

  2. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, (2015, March 17). Reprocessing Medical Devices in Health Care Settings: Validation Methods and Labeling. Guidance for Industry and Food and Drug Administration Staff.

 

*ASP AEROFLEX™ AER and EVOTECH™ ECR have been cleared by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to high-level disinfect flexible, semi-critical endoscopes.

The third-party trademarks used herein are the properties of their respective owners.

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