ANNUAL REVIEW master Final3a - St Vincent's University Hospital

St. Vincent’s Healthcare Group Limited - Annual Review 2007
Department- Nursing
Hospital Sterile Services Department - HSSD
Activities
The National Hospitals Office has undertaken a national review of standards and practices for decontamination
of reusable invasive medical devices in all public acute hospitals.
The review was to be carried out by an independent company, Healthcare Science Ltd., who has vast
experience in this field. The HSSD manager, Ms Ita Balfe, was the ‘link person’ between the NHO and the
hospital, in order to facilitate a comprehensive consultation process throughout the organization. Prior to the
official review Ita and the infection control team undertook an internal audit of all departments and wards
using reprocessed medical devices. This proved very beneficial to all concerned as it highlighted areas that
were meeting standards and those that needed some additional attention. The formal Decontamination
review took place over 4 days It was intensive and thorough through out the organization. Congratulations to
all involved in preparing staff and areas for the review. The organization scored highly and came in the top 5
hospitals in the country. Well done to Ita and all concerned.
Education
Sinead Moran and Stephen Newman commenced their BSC, in Sterile Services; at the Institute of
Technology; Tallaght. September 2007.
Maribel Franco is undertaking a Masters in Sterile Services (distance learning) from The University of
Scotland. October 2007.
5 members of the technical staff are completing the skills programme in decontamination.
It is proposed to look at competency based training for all technical staff in the year ahead.
Statistics
2007 saw further increases in activity levels for reprocessing medical devices in HSSD. The department has
taken on the decontamination and reprocessing of flexible scopes from Theatre. This is a major undertaking
and has been successfully integrated with only 5 additional staff. Thank you to all concerned for your
cooperation in this transfer.
Due to lack of capacity for sterilizing its own medical devices at St. Columcille's Hospital Loughlinstown the
HSSD at SVUH has also taken on work from there. Each day sets are received, reprocessed and dispatched
back sterile to St. Colmcille's Hospital.
There are many positive projects happening in our HSSD, thanks to a dedicated and hard working group of
people, nurtured and supported by their manager Ita Balfe. Unfortunately Ita leaves us at the end of January
2008. She will be greatly missed by her friends in HSSD because that is what she is to each of them. Ita’s
background is Theatre where she worked for most of her professional career .It was here she gained her
knowledge and developed her interest in decontamination and sterilizing of medical devices. Her colleagues
in theatre will miss her and wish her well in all her future undertakings’. Good luck and best wishes for a long
and happy retirement Ita.
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