6 Environmental Cleaning and Equipment Safety Free Online FlashCards

What does cleaning accomplish before disinfection or sterilization?

Cleaning physically removes soil and organic material, reducing microorganisms and helping later disinfection or sterilization work effectively.

Does ordinary disinfection reliably destroy bacterial spores?

Ordinary disinfection inactivates many or most disease-causing microorganisms, but does not reliably destroy bacterial spores.

What does sterilization destroy?

Sterilization destroys all forms of microbial life, including bacterial spores.

What processing does a critical item require?

Critical items contact normally sterile tissue or the vascular system; they require sterilization before use.

What should you do if inspection finds soil on a cleaned device?

If soil remains after rinsing and inspection, repeat cleaning; do not proceed as though the device is clean.

What does a disinfectant’s wet contact time mean?

Keep the surface visibly wet for the product’s specified contact time so the disinfectant can work.

What direction should guide systematic environmental cleaning?

Work from clean to dirty and high to low, using an orderly pattern to avoid spreading contamination.

When should shared noncritical patient-care equipment be cleaned and disinfected?

Clean and disinfect shared noncritical patient-care equipment between patients as required by facility policy and the equipment instructions.

How should potentially contaminated broken glass be picked up?

Use tools such as forceps, tongs, or a brush and dustpan; never pick it up with bare hands.

How should contaminated sharps be discarded?

Place contaminated sharps in a closable, puncture-resistant, leak-resistant sharps container as soon as feasible. Do not recap, bend, or break a used sharp by hand.

When does OSHA require decontamination of contaminated work surfaces?

Decontaminate work surfaces after procedures, promptly when visibly contaminated or after a spill, and at shift end if contamination may have occurred since the last cleaning.

Why must cleaning come before disinfection or sterilization?

Cleaning must come before disinfection or sterilization. Dried blood and tissue can be difficult to remove and interfere with those processes.