Module 5 Flashcards
A system that divides medical equipment into three risk-based categories: critical, semicritical, and noncritical.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Spaulding Classification
Equipment that must be free from all microbial contamination when it enters sterile tissue, bone, or the vascular system; a Spaulding Classification category.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Critical equipment
Equipment that should be free from all microorganisms (although small numbers of bacterial spores may be present) when it comes in contact with mucous membranes or non-intact skin during use; a Spaulding Classification category.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Semicritical equipment
Equipment that does not need to be sterile, but it should only come into contact with intact skin; a Spaulding Classification category.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Noncritical equipment
The removal of foreign material (e.g., soil, organic material) from objects; required before disinfection and sterilization can occur since foreign material interferes with the effectiveness of these processes.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Cleaning
The use of friction produced by rubbing or scrubbing surfaces to clean equipment.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Manual cleaning
The use of a machine to remove debris and soil from equipment.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Mechanical cleaning
A type of mechanical cleaner that operates much like a dishwasher, using water and detergents to remove soil from equipment.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Washer-disinfectors
A type of mechanical cleaner that operates in a similar fashion to washer-disinfectors, applying water circulation and detergents to remove soil. These units can also apply a timed heat process (for example, 93°C [199°F], for ten minutes).
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Washer-decontaminators
A type of mechanical cleaner that operates using rotating spray arms for a wash cycle, followed by a steam sterilization cycle (140°C [285°F]).
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Washer-sterilizers
A type of mechanical cleaner that operates by sending ultrasonic waves through a liquid solution to disrupt bonds that hold soils to surfaces.
Ultrasonic cleaners
A type of mechanical cleaner that operates by exposing instruments, devices, and items to direct steam, under pressure, at specific temperatures (between 121°C [250°F] and 132°C [270°F]).
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Autoclaves
Thermal or chemical destruction of pathogenic and other types of microorganisms.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Disinfection
The stated amount of time a disinfectant needs in order to be effective against microorganisms; also known as “wet time” or “dwell time.”
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Contact time
The process by which all forms of microbial life are destroyed or eliminated.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Sterilization
The shortest possible time between a sterilized item’s removal from the sterilizer and its aseptic transfer to the sterile field.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Immediate-use steam sterilization (IUSS)
The department or area in a healthcare facility that processes and controls sterile and nonsterile medical equipment, supplies, and devices used in patient care.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Sterile processing
The visible monitors on equipment that indicate whether the correct sterilizing parameters were met.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Physical monitors
Devices used to detect potential sterilization process failures that could result from incorrect packaging, incorrect loading of the sterilizer, or malfunctions of the sterilizer.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Chemical indicators (CIs)
Test systems containing viable microorganisms providing a defined resistance to a specific sterilization process; provide information on whether necessary conditions were met to kill a specified number of microorganisms for a given sterilization process.
(ANSI/AAMI, ISO)
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Biological indicators (BIs)
A device with a defined resistance to a sterilization process used to routinely monitor sterilizer efficacy and perform qualification testing of sterilizers.
Section A: Cleaning, Disinfection, and Sterilization of Medical Devices/Equipment
Process challenge device (PCD)
Surfaces and items that are found within the patient zone, which includes the patient or resident and their immediate surroundings. In LTC settings, this would refer specifically to the residents’ rooms, but may also refer to certain common areas.
Section C: Environment of Care
High-touch surfaces
A temperature-controlled supply chain that includes all vaccine-related equipment and procedures.
Section C: Environment of Care
Cold chain
Composed of everything included in the overall airhandling system for any facility. These systems supply, filter, condition (meaning heat, cool, humidify, or dehumidify), and exhaust air using a wide range of designs and equipment.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system
The number of times the air volume of a given space is replaced in one hour.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Air changes per hour (ACH)
Describes the pressure relationships with respect to the surrounding area or corridor and can be positive (excess air supply in the room), negative (air drawn into the room), or neutral.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Air pressure balancing
Used to keep microbial contamination out of rooms, and for immunosuppressed residents, such as those undergoing bone marrow transplantation.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Positive air pressure
Used as an isolation measure to keep microbes from escaping from rooms, and for residents with infectious airborne diseases, such as tuberculosis, measles, and varicella.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Negative air pressure
Refers to situations where the air pressure is the same between two adjacent rooms.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Neutral air pressure
Defined as filtration with efficiency of 99.97% in removing particles 0.3 micron or more in size.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
High-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration
Waste water containing sewage contaminants.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Black water
Purified water that has had charged ions removed; it is used for various applications within healthcare, including the laboratory.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Deionized water
Water (as from a sink or bath) that does not contain serious contaminants (as from toilets or diapers).
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Gray water
Water suitable for drinking.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Potable water
Water that has been forced through a special membrane, under pressure, producing highly purified water, which typically requires remineralizing with essential trace elements before use; it is used for various applications within healthcare, including in dialysis.
Section D: Ventilation and Water Management
Reverse osmosis water
A liquid or semi-liquid blood or other potentially infectious materials; contaminated items that would release blood or other potentially infectious materials in a liquid or semi-liquid state if compressed; items that are caked with dried blood or other potentially infectious materials and are capable of releasing these materials during handling; contaminated sharps; and pathological and microbiological wastes containing blood or other potentially infectious materials. (OSHA)
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Regulated waste
Fiber-based substrates to which antimicrobial agents have been applied, either at the surface or incorporated into the fibers, rendering a product that kills or inhibits the growth of microorganisms.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Antimicrobial fabric
An area where, after extraction, textiles are either conditioned (partly dried) or fully dried in a dryer or tumbler.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Condition/drying area
According to OSHA, laundry that has been soiled with blood or other potentially infectious material (OPIM), or may contain sharps.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Contaminated laundry
The use of physical or chemical means to remove, inactivate, or destroy bloodborne pathogens on a surface; or the use of disinfectants to render the item incapable of transmitting infectious particles, so that the item is made safe for handling, use, or disposal.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Decontamination
An area where excess water is removed from textiles after laundering, but before conditioning or drying.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Extraction area
An area where textiles are folded.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Folding area
Non-textile objects or items (e.g., instruments, disposable devices, sharps, personal resident information, etc.) that may potentially harm people or
laundry equipment if left among the textiles.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Foreign object
An activity or structure that separates one movement, action, or space from another.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Functional separation/barrier
A clean state, free of pathogens (or in sufficiently low numbers) so as to minimize risk of infection.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Hygienically clean
Items that have been laundered, cleaned, disinfected, or sterilized (as appropriate), so that they are safe to use as intended.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Processed
An area where soiled textiles are sorted, usually by textile category and sometimes by degree of soiling or color.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Receiving area
A process for preparing the textiles for delivery and having them wrapped and ready for transport.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Staging
The following human body fluids: semen; vaginal secretions; cerebrospinal, synovial, pleural, pericardial, peritoneal, or amniotic fluids; saliva in dental procedures; bodily fluids that are visibly contaminated with blood, and all bodily fluids in situations where it is difficult or impossible to differentiate between them; and any unfixed tissue or organ (other than intact skin) from a human (living or dead). Also included are HIV-containing cell, tissue, or organ cultures, as well as HIV- or HBV-containing culture
mediums or other solutions; and blood, organs, or other tissues from experimental animals infected with HIV or HBV.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Other potentially infectious material (OPIM)
A textile product that has been used or worn and soiled by perspiration, bodily oils, or one of the many other items to which it may have been exposed.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Soiled
An area where soiled textiles are washed and in which such equipment as washers, extractors, washerextractors, continuous-batch washers and/or
continuous processing systems are located; also known as the wash floor.
Section E: Waste and Laundry Management
Washing (processing) area
A process to assess the impact that construction and renovation work in healthcare facilities has on IPC programs and practices and to ensure that new construction is designed to meet the needs of the anticipated resident population.
Section F: Construction and Maintenance
Infection control risk assessment (ICRA)
These written plans describe work process and equipment requirements to manage potential infection risks from proposed risk.
Section F: Construction and Maintenance
infection control risk mitigation recommendation
(ICRMR)
A process that verifies delivery of new construction according to contract specifications.
Section F: Construction and Maintenance
Commissioning
