Employee exposure to hazardous chemicals, such as pesticides, disinfectants, cleaners, and hazardous drugs, in the workplace creates a liability for the industry, including healthcare, with some healthcare organizations paying up to $10.5 billion.

We are going through a very perilous time while we are destroying our planet with the overuse of chemicals, pollution of our wastewater streams, and continuing climate change. It is up to all of us consumers, industry and healthcare professionals to work together to reduce waste and reduce the chemical footprint before it is too late.

Most of us realize that while we may not be in a supply chain crisis or shock yet, nevertheless we are facing a supply chain dilemma. A supply chain shock is defined as an unexpected event that disrupts the flow of goods and services within a supply chain, like a flood which we’ve experienced, an unexpected move done that too, pandemic

 There was a time when processing medical devices was simple. Paper count sheets were commonly used, stick on labels identified product and location, and documents could be kept in the supervisor’s office because processing these devices was intuitive.

Shorter cycles, less rinses have been discussed for some time at AAMI working groups and amongst healthcare professionals. Most agree that adequate contact time and rinsing is good practice for manual and automated processes. Detergents lift but rinsing removes the soil. Now manufacturers of new washer/disinfectors have gone even further by promoting cycles preset in their new machines which eliminate rinse steps and rinse times

Let’s talk about rinsing, whether its dishes, your hair, salad fixings or medical devices. Doesn’t sound all that glamorous does it? Right up there with taking out the trash and many other chores that need to be done. That’s why they’re called chores after all. Truth is rinsing is really, really important, and yet is often overlooked or simply not done well enough because it takes time...

Every day seems to bring a new natural disaster or calamity, wildfires burning up New Mexico, western reservoirs drained to their lowest levels ever, extreme weather, flooding and landslides around the globe, can it get any worse? In a word, YES, yes it can if we don’t also stop poisoning ourselves with chemicals and products toxic to both humans and the environment.

It is late October, a time when apples are pressed into cider, leaves turn to vibrant autumn colors and Halloween horror movies scare and thrill audiences. While the names of monsters, ghosts and ghouls in these movies change, there are some recurring themes that are common to all of them including dangers lurking in hidden places, unexpected twists, secret weapons and of course, sequels. In a horror movie starring SPD professionals ...

Gels can preserve tissue and bioburden under a tough to remove clear coating. Jurassic Park, the book and movie was based on the notion that mosquitos were so well persevered in amber that dinosaur DNA could be recovered after millions of years. Well, pre-cleaning gels work much the same way, after a short time a sticky skin forms on the gel, trapping the debris beneath and becoming virtually impervious to cleaning. Enter the pre-cleaning gel, easy to use, and convenient, made to prevent soil from drying onto used instruments; is it wet or just an illusion?

Does the idea of the conservation of energy make you think of the gas mileage your car gets, or putting on a sweater during the winter, or the low-power LED light bulbs that make you think you’re going blind...