Water quality is a significant consideration at all stages of medical devices reprocessing, with the primary goal of ensuring that surgical instruments and medical equipment are cleaned, disinfected, and sterilized properly.
Various minerals and pollutants commonly found in tap water can cause chaos on this process in a variety of ways:
- 1. pitting/corrosion/staining of instruments
- 2. Mineral scale accumulation
- 3. Decreased detergent efficiency
- 4. Formation of biofilms/increased microbial and endotoxin load
These issues can result in costly rework, replacement costs, and increased risk, for example:
- 1. Repetition of loads/cycles.
- 2. Instruments and medical devices have a shorter lifespan.
- 3. Reduced reprocessing equipment performance and longevity.
- 4. Biofilm formation/microorganism entrapment in damaged instruments may pose a risk to patients.
WATER REQUIREMENTS FOR MEDICAL DEVICE REPROCESSING
The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) publishes a comprehensive Technical Information Report (TIR) called TIR34 – Water for the Reprocessing of Medical Devices to provide education and guidance to healthcare personnel.
AAMI TIR34: 2014/(R)2017 specifies the water quality that should be used in each stage of medical device reprocessing for each category of medical device.
- 1. Water quality is required to clean, rinse, disinfect, and sterilize medical devices.
- 2. Water types are classified based on hardness, pH, microorganism levels, endotoxin levels, and other factors.
- 3. Technical details about water treatment and monitoring are included in the annexes.
NETSOL WATER, in healthcare water system design and service, provides comprehensive solutions specifically designed to produce water that meets the AAMI TIR34 Water Quality Specifications for Medical Device Reprocessing.
NETSOL's systems deliver the quality and quantity of water you need to optimize your process, as well as the data reports to back it up, by combining pretreatment, reverse osmosis, ion exchange, UV light, and final filtration – all while using digital remote monitoring. Vantage SPD systems enable your department to demonstrate that your water quality is consistent and that your water purification system is functioning properly.
For added peace of mind, all Vantage SPD systems are compatible with NETSOL's ground-breaking Water One services programme. Customers can focus on their core business while NETSOL manages the maintenance and performance of their water treatment system with NETSOL's Water One services.
The following are some of the advantages of Water One Services-
- 1. Service that includes consumables and replacement parts.
- 2. Water of consistent quality and quantity to meet your application requirements
- 3. Maximum system availability and operational efficiency
- 4. Budgeting that is predictable thanks to simple, flat-rate billing
- 5. Monthly water system performance reports and real-time system monitoring are available.