SEPTEMBER - 202119Flexible endoscope reprocessing and tracking is critical for patient safety because of reprocessing challenges, variables, and patient risk. Endoscopes are flexible medical devices that allow the practitioner to look inside a patient. Some examples of flexible endoscopes are colonoscopes, bronchoscopes and gastroscopes, which include a fiber optic system to view inside the colon, the lower respiratory tract or the stomach. These flexible endoscopes cannot be sterilized at high temperature therefore endoscopes are reprocessed with a high-level disinfectant, a chemical germicide which can destroy viruses, vegetative bacteria, fungus, mycobacterium, and some bacterial spores. In recent years there have been several accounts of incomplete or inappropriate cleaning of endoscopes resulting in look backs and patient notifications. FDA reported over 400 patients contracted serious infections from bacteria tainted endoscopes between January 2010 and October 2015. Some of these incidents have resulted in patient harm and lawsuits. Pro-actively our facility performed a root cause analysis and corrective action plan that included a process improvement plan for reprocessing training and competency assessment. The current patient documentation paper trail did allow easy traceability. We believed technology could improve patient safety.The initial problem statement included the following issues and pain points. Flexible endoscopes are used in the Operating LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE PATIENT SAFETY Michael D. Gudejko, Regional Director Surgical Support Services, Sterile Processing & High Level Disinfection, Baystate HealthByThe application of technology and a "smart" system has drastically improved patient safety by reducing human error while reducing wear and tear on equipment inventory
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