Hospital tracking system available for dentists

The proven ALISA instrument tracking system in operation in a number of private and public hospitals throughout Australia and New Zealand has been adapted for use in dental surgeries and associated specialities.

Deneng Pty Ltd, the designers of the system, have just released ALISAdental, a simplified version of the hospital system.

Australian Standard AS 4187-1994 (April '94) "Code of practice for cleaning, disinfecting and sterilising reusable medical and surgical instruments and equipment, and maintenance of associated environments in health care facilities" stipulates that a record must be kept of all instruments which undergo the autoclave sterilisation process.

The Standard requires the following information to be recorded for all sterilized items:

• The date of the cycle;
• The steriliser number or code;
• The cycle or load number;
• The exposure time and temperature;
• The name or I.D. of the loading officer; and
• The general contents of the load.

The ALISA-dental system enables this information to be easily recorded and stored with each pack having a unique barcode number. The packs are then scanned prior to placing in the steriliser and this information is stored in the computer.

It is expected to become mandatory that dental practitioners record this information and be able to track any sterile items used to a specific patient as is presently done in operating theatres.

As the barcoded packs are used in a surgery, they are scanned with the hand scanner, the patient's identification number is then entered into the scanner and this stored information is also downloaded to the computer.

It is possible to produce a printout at this time for inclusion in the patient's notes, but this is not entirely necessary as the stored information in the computer can readily be retrieved if required at a later date.

Should it ever be necessary for proof of sterility to be shown for a particular procedure on a specific patient, then it is possible to produce a list of all sterile items that were used in the procedure, and each item can be related to a specific sterilisation cycle. The records of the steriliser test (time/temperature printout) and 'Bowie Dick' or Chemical test results will prove that each cycle has been properly carried out.

The system is readily configured for any practice, and is easy to operate. No special training is required.

A typical system comprises a computer, the ALISA-dental software, a barcode label printer, a portable hand scanner and a downloading cradle.

Also included in the software are a number of utilities to enable statistical data to be obtained relating to the usage of different items, handpieces etc.