Join us on September 7 at 1 p.m. CT

Driving to Zero: The Rationale for Every Load Monitoring Across Sterilization Modalities

In healthcare, the objective is to continually raise the bar for patient safety to ensure positive patient outcomes. The sterile processing department plays a critical role in meeting this goal. While there are many essential tools in the sterilization quality assurance toolbox, the biological indicator (BI) is the only monitoring tool that directly measures the lethality (killing power) of the sterilization process. This presentation will explore the fundamentals of steam and vaporized hydrogen peroxide sterilization, the sterilization quality assurance tools available to monitor the effectiveness of the processes, and the rationale for performing every load monitoring (ELM) with a BI regardless of the sterilization modality.  

About the Speakers

Jennifer Zeck, RN, BSN, CRCST, CER, CIS

Jennifer has been a RN for over 20 years with nearly half that time as an OR nurse and SPD manager in both the Army and civilian sectors. In addition, she has worked in the Quality, Infection Prevention, Patient Safety, Risk Management and Professional Development fields and has acted as a consultant and/or a speaker for her health care system, the Oregon Patient Safety Commission, Boston Scientific, APIC and AORN. She has sat on various AAMI working groups and has been involved in research focusing on flexible endoscopes. In addition, she has been a board member of the NW Cascade IAHCSMM chapter. Jennifer’s passion centers on patient and employee safety, especially in the perioperative environment. She is currently a Clinical Specialist for 3M.

Sarah Sholes Antonelli, BA, CSPDT, CFER

Sarah Antonelli is currently a Clinical Specialist for the Medical Solutions Division of 3M. Specifically, she provides technical support for the Atlantic and Southeast regions for solutions related to Hygiene Management, Electrode Monitoring & Sterilization. Sarah is a Certified as a Sterile Processing and Distribution Technician as well as a Certified Flexible Endoscope Reprocessor. She is a member of HSPA and APIC. Her previous work experience includes nearly 20 years in healthcare including sales, management and training in the pharmaceutical and medical supply industry.

Webinar Learning Objectives

• Review the key risks of surgical and healthcare-acquired infections
• Differentiate the two primary modalities of sterilization: steam and vaporized hydrogen peroxide (VH202)
• Cite the relevant AORN, ANSI/AAMI and CSA guidelines pertaining to quality assurance monitoring across modalities
• Describe the technology behind the “king” of monitoring tools: the Biological Indicator (BI)
• Explain the rationale for Every Load Monitoring (ELM)