Could the use of procedure packs help drive efficiencies and cost savings in the surgical environment and beyond, in addition to helping reduce infection rates through the introduction of more standardised procedures? SUZANNE CALLANDER reports.
If by the term ‘procedure pack’ we mean a combination of instruments, devices and consumables to conduct a clinical procedure, then the NHS has been using procedure packs since its inception in 1948.
Single-use procedure packs were introduced in the 1970s, although largely limited to dressing or catheterisation packs. “This provoked some debate, as even in the 1970s, NHS Procurement realised that standardisation could deliver cost reductions,” explained Simon Charlesworth of Bailey Instruments. “However, despite official reports being commissioned and committees formed, many clinicians still guarded their right to use a particular size of galipot or number of forceps. Suppliers saw commercial advantage to offering bespoke procedure pack solutions and the proliferation of packs grew and developed.”
“Since that time, new standards of decontamination and extended implementation of the Medical Device Directive into NHS Sterile Supply Departments has occurred. This trend continues today, with new anticipated regulations relating to, among other aspects, instrument traceability and marking by way of ‘Unique Device Identifiers’ (UDI) and the management of product registration systems,” continues Simon Charlesworth. “The new legislation is expected to become law within the UK and EU in 2014 and will bring with it wide ranging implications for both the public and private sectors.
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