N.J. Admin. Code § 8:43G-8.4

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 21, November 4, 2024

Section 8:43G-8.4 - Central service patient services

(a) Entrance to the central service processing and decontamination area shall be restricted to persons attired in hospital-laundered or protective attire, in relation to the purpose and scope of their duties.

1. All personnel performing decontamination, preparation, and assembly shall be provided hospital laundered scrubs.

(b) All reusable patient care items shall be reprocessed according to manufacturers' written recommendations.

(c) There shall be a preventive maintenance program for all patient care equipment processed by central service that includes performance verification records. Preventive maintenance shall be documented and records shall be available for inspection.

(d) Sterile supplies which bear an expiration date shall not exceed the shelf life date as recommended by the manufacturer of the packaging and/or of the device contained.

1. Muslin blends shall not exceed a shelf life of 30 days.

2. A policy and procedure to retrieve and reprocess outdates shall be established and enforced.

(e) If the facility is using an Event Related Sterility program, the process shall:

1. Be approved by the Hospital Infection Control Committee;

2. Have a continuous process improvement plan with monthly audits and documentation of facility compliance including:

i. Proper transportation of sterile product;

ii. Proper storage conditions of sterile product;

iii. Proper rotation of sterile product; and

iv. Maintenance of sterile pack integrity; and

3. Include annual inservice education as part of mandatory Infection Control inservicing.

N.J. Admin. Code § 8:43G-8.4

Amended by R.1992 d.72, effective 2/18/1992.
See: 23 New Jersey Register 2590(a), 24 New Jersey Register 590(a).
AAMI standard incorporated by reference.
Amended by R.2004 d.302, effective 8/2/2004.
See: 35 New Jersey Register 2847(a), 35 New Jersey Register 3782(a), 36 New Jersey Register 3538(a).
Rewrote the section.