Flowable Space: Setting Up an Efficient Sterilization Center

Did you know that the way your Sterilization Center is set up could save you 5+ minutes per procedure and set your practice apart in infection control? Laying out your efficient Sterilization Center puts your practice in the fast lane on the road to success. Take an honest look at your practice’s Sterilization Center and compare to the layout ideas below:

Keep it Centralized! 

The Sterilization Center is the heart of the practice, so its flow must remain unclogged to avoid delays or issues. Sterilization should be centrally located to ensure easy movement in and out. Placing it at the end of the building or in an awkward corner quickly hampers staff efficiency, wasting time, work, and energy.

Keep the Flow From “Dirty” to “Clean” in a Straight Line.

The designation of your sterilization areas makes all the difference. Staff entering with contaminated instruments should never be adjacent to the area where clean instruments are wrapped. Ideally, processing from dirty to clean should follow a straight-line flow, clearly separating clean and dirty zones. Additionally, there must be enough space for staff to move seamlessly through the sequence without bumping into each other or getting in the way.

Segment Spaces According to Activity. 

The CDC says your instrument processing area should consist of four sections: 1. Receiving, cleaning, and decontamination. 2. Preparation and packaging. 3. Sterilization. 4. Storage. Traffic flow should go sequentially from one activity to the next. If the process is out of sequence, Sterilization isn’t running efficiently.

Space is Key. 

Having enough counterspace, walking space, and storage space is a big deal in Sterilization. Again, if you think of it as the heart of your practice, you wouldn’t want the arteries to get clogged and cause delays or accidents to happen.

Have Separate and Designated Entrance/Exit Ways

Ideally, Sterilization should flow in a straight line. Having doorways at separate ends of Sterilization optimizes the flow and dramatically cuts the risk of infection, sharps injuries, or accidents.

If your Sterilization is running smoothly and efficiently, your practice is running smoothly and efficiently.

Have questions?