Hutchinson Regional Healthcare Center
Nanosonics AuditPro Benefits: Built-in Education, Standardization
About the Facility
Hutchinson Regional Healthcare Center is a community hospital serving the city of Hutchinson, Kansas. Looking to improve probe reprocessing standardization across their facility, Hutchinson was an early adopter of Nanosonics AuditProTM technology.
AuditPro is an automated and secure digital system that combines clinician infection prevention decision making with trophon2 infection control workflow data and patient procedure information.
Lindsay Turner, Lead Sonographer Imaging Services, shares how Nanosonics AuditPro technology coupled with trophon2 devices have positively impacted their infection prevention processes and workflow.
Nanosonics AuditPro Benefits: Built-in Education, Standardization
The team at Hutchinson uses ultrasound for a variety of procedures – many of which are considered critical or semi-critical according to Spaulding classification, as the probes come in contact with tissue, mucous membrane or nonintact skin. Many different staff members are involved in both the ultrasound procedures and reprocessing the ultrasound probes for the next patients, so standardization and education around high level disinfection processes is key. The mobile device’s automated prompts ensure a standardized workflow.
“In our facility, sonographers, nursing staff, APRN staff, and surgical scrub tech nurses might all be involved in procedures. The teaching component of AuditPro has been tremendously impactful for providing standardized education for clinicians across the facility. For example, if a probe was used in a critical procedure, AuditPro will ask the clinician if a sterile probe cover was used.”Lindsay TurnerLead Sonographer Imaging Services, Hutchinson Regional Healthcare Center
Traceability, Insights and Notifications
Another positive benefit they’ve seen with Nanosonics AuditPro has been the data traceability.
“Prior to AuditPro, I would have to go across the hospital and change into surgery gowns to get the paper logbook if I needed procedural data. In the old system, I might not catch an error for 30 days – at which point it’s very difficult to track back a patient or procedural data. With AuditPro, we have instant, digital records to indicate how a probe has been reprocessed prior to and after a procedure. If any procedure isn’t logged or completed properly, I will get an email notification and can easily address the issue right then and there. This ensures we keep our patients at the least possible risk of cross-contamination, and ultimately provides the best care to our patients.”Lindsay TurnerLead Sonographer Imaging Services, Hutchinson Regional Healthcare Center
Outcomes
By implementing Nanosonics AuditPro, Hutchinson Regional Medical Center has been able to standardize their probe reprocessing procedures across the facility. Existing clinicians and new staff have built-in disinfection education with their ultrasound procedures. Through the digital notifications, the Hutchinson team was alerted to two process discrepancies prior to patient exposure, and adjusted their standard operating procedures to ensure all probes are high level disinfected before a procedure.
