Transportation and Storage (Single Use Items)

Guidelines:

• Sterilization packaging systems are designed to:
  • Permit a sterilant to contact the packaged contents
  • Protect the sterile items from contamination during transport and storage until use
  • Enable aseptic delivery of the items to the sterile field.
• Sterile items should be stored under controlled conditions to reduce the risk of contamination
  • Limiting access to authorized personnel
  • Using closed or covered storage containers outside a designated sterile storage room
  • Ensuring bottom shelves of racks and shelving units are solid
  • Ensuring racks, bins, and containers are clean and dry and configured on shelving in a way that allows for air
    circulation and environmental cleaning
  • Storing sterile items away from wet conditions
  • Removing sterile items from external shipping containers before transfer to sterile storage

Considerations:

• Healthcare organizations should:
  • Establish and implement standardized sterile processing procedures and measures for oversight of all aspects of processing and transport
  • Establish a process for determining the shelf life of sterilized items that is event-related unless otherwise specified by the packaging system manufacturer’s labeled expiration date
  • Verify SPD personnel competency
  • Ensure safe storage environment for sterilized items

Nurse’s role:

• Shared responsibility with sterile processing department to deliver sterile items to the sterile field
• Verify package integrity and the appropriate color change of chemical indicators (CIs) before using aseptic technique to deliver items to the sterile field
  • Visually inspect packaging for defects
  • Wrap, filters, peel packs
• Inspect rigid sterilization containers
  • Free of tents/chips
  • Lid and container fit properly
  • Latching mechanisms functioning to maintain seal
  • Etc.
• Follow facility policies and procedures

Pitfalls:

• Perioperative personnel will not open packages unless external CIs indicate the item has undergone the sterilization process
• Perioperative personnel will visually inspect packaging for defects
• After the package has been opened, perioperative personnel will evaluate the internal CI to ensure the sterilization parameters have been met before using aseptic technique to deliver contents to the sterile field

Examples:

• N/A

Linchpins (Key Points):

• Safe transportation and storage of sterile items reduce the risk of SSIs
• The perioperative RN shares responsibility with SPD to ensure safe delivery of sterile items to the sterile field (including
  transportation and storage)
• The perioperative RN visually inspects sterile item packaging for defects
• The perioperative RN verifies CIs prior to delivering sterile items to the sterile field