Milwaukee-based Ascension Columbia St. Mary’s Hospital has delayed surgeries after finding unsterilized surgical equipment, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported Sept. 11.
“Nothing is more important to us than the well-being and safety of our patients. We remain committed to the delivery of safe patient care,” an Ascension Wisconsin spokesperson told Becker’s. “In an effort to ensure patient safety, we have rigorous, multi-layered quality control protocols for all surgical equipment and instrumentation. Before any instrument tray is cleared for use in our operating rooms, it undergoes mandatory sterilization verification and final safety checks. These comprehensive checks and balances are in place to ensure that every instrument entering the surgical suite has been properly sterilized and is ready for safe patient care prior to use in surgery.”
In late August or early September, surgical teams at the hospital found tiny black flecks or other foreign material in surgical equipment trays during pre-surgery safety checks, three healthcare professionals told the Sentinel.
“Through these processes, we identified instrument trays with a few tiny black flecks, which testing determined not to be biological in nature,” the Ascension spokesperson said. “These instrument trays were immediately removed and not utilized in any surgical cases. In furtherance of our commitment to patient safety, surgical instrumentation is currently being sterilized at alternate sites and returned to CSMM. The sterilizers at CSMM were taken out of service while we conducted thorough preventative maintenance per manufacturer guidance. We are following established protocols and multi-layered safety checks before resuming use of the sterilization equipment. Patient safety has not been and will not be compromised. CSMM’s operating rooms have remained open utilizing established back-up protocols designed to ensure safe, uninterrupted care for our community.”
The hospital staff has relied on surgical equipment sterilized off-site and disposable instruments, the Sentinel reported.
Columbia St. Mary’s is Ascension Wisconsin’s flagship hospital. Many complex patients are transferred to the center, according to the Sentinel, which provides advanced surgical care and the region’s only burn center.
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