GB2381751A - Safety surgical sterilisation tool and system - Google Patents

Abstract

The system includes an individual coding machine that codes each surgical tool and gives an individual identification number that can be scanned. The main process includes a database linked up to individual checkpoints that will set an alarm off if each procedure is not adhered to. Each checkpoint will consist of a computer with a scanner and related software that is connected to the main database. The alarm system will be programmed to alert the person at that specific checkpoint and also notity the central operator that a tool has missed a specific step in the sterilisation process. This enables the process to be rechecked to ensure this breakdown does not occur again.

Description

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Safety Surgical Sterilisation tool and system The invention relates to the sterilisation and safety tool and process of all medical and surgical tools. The process relates to a streamlining and error proof methodology to sterilisation of surgical equipment.

At present there art safety issues concerning the sterilisation of medical equipment, where some equipment is accidentally being reused before sterilisation. This invention serves to ensure that every surgical item goes through a safety system that prevents any items from being used before they are sterilised.

The system would operate as follows: individual coding which would come in the form of an electrical component inserted into the tool. This information would be maintained onto a central database. Once inserted the tools can be used for surgery. The tools must be scanned at every check point along the process. The process would be a breakdown of several check points which includes before surgery, from the nurse to the doctor, after surgery, from the operating room to the sterilisation facility, from the sterilisation facility back to the surgery,'back into inventory, and then, back to the nurse, and the process commences again. All relevant parties/check points will have scanners and will scan the individual surgical equipment with their own personalised code, this ensures that without the correct scanning process from the previous check point, the surgical item will raise an alarm on the system and will prevent any tool being used without all procedures being correctly followed.

The essential features is a surgical tool which incorporates an electrical component which codes each piece of equipment and enables this to be recognised by a scanner at every check point, and downloaded onto a database. The other key to the process is the software that offers a complete tracking system and raises an alarm when one of the steps in the process is missed out.

Claims (4)

1. CLAIMS ]. A surgical sterilisation tool system that would operate by using a machine that codes individual surgical tools. This information would be maintained onto a central database and once inserted the tools can be used for surgery
2. 2. A sterilisation system as described in Claim I that stores the coded information onto a central database for monitoring purposes.
3. 3. The system as described in Claims I and 2 that uses a scanning system that scans all tools that go through the checkpoint process to detect whether or not each safety process has been completed.
4. 4. Each checkpoint can not be past without every other prior checkpoints been completed. If one checkpoint is missed an alarm system will notify the operator at that checkpoint of the omission and will also register an alarm to the computer so that the missed checkpoint will be investigated.