Capturing portable medical equipment disinfection data via an automated novel disinfection tracking system

Area of Science:

• Healthcare-associated infection prevention
• Medical device hygiene monitoring
• Hospital operational efficiency

Background:

• Portable Medical Equipment (PME), including workstations-on-wheels (WOWs) and vital signs machines (VMs), are associated with healthcare-associated infections.
• Manual disinfection monitoring of PME is challenging and often ineffective.
• An automated Disinfection Tracking System (DTS) was implemented to track PME disinfection events.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the pattern of disinfection events recorded by a DTS on PME.
• To assess the feasibility of automated tracking for PME disinfection in a hospital setting.

Main Methods:

• The study was conducted over 25 days in two acute-care units.
• DTS devices were installed on 10 WOWs and 5 VMs, differentiating between 'screen-on' and 'screen-off' devices.
• Disinfection events were recorded as moisture events and stored in a central database.

Main Results:

• A total of 766 moisture events were recorded across both units during the study period.
• The highest frequency of disinfection events occurred between 6:00 AM and 7:00 AM.
• Disinfection event patterns consistently aligned with nursing shift change times.

Conclusions:

• The DTS effectively recorded and reported PME disinfection events.
• Disinfection of PME frequently occurs during nursing shift changes.
• Automated tracking systems like DTS show potential for continuous monitoring and reporting of PME disinfection, aiding infection control efforts.