Climate impact of the Instrument Cleaning Process in General Practices

The Dutch College of General Practitioners (Nederlands Huisartsen Genootschap, NHG) is working on a revision of the guideline Infectiepreventie in de huisartsen- en verloskundigenpraktijk (Infection Prevention in General Practice and Midwifery Practice), including the chapter ‘Reiniging en desinfectie of sterilisatie van instrumentarium’ (Cleaning and Disinfection or Sterilisation of Instruments). In this context, the NHG has commissioned CE Delft to assess the climate impact of various methods of storing, cleaning, disinfecting, and sterilising semi-critical and critical instruments used in general practice.

The aim of this study is to calculate the climate impact of the following cleaning steps:

• wet storing in a container with cleaning agent;
• dry storing after wiping the instrument clean with a paper towel;
• manual cleaning;
• cleaning and chemical disinfection with a medical dishwasher;
• sterilisation with an autoclave;
• external sterilisation at a hospital (Central Sterilisation Department, CSA).

The focus is on comparing the climate impact of these cleaning steps and identifying the factors that have the greatest influence on the overall climate impact. This analysis also results in recommendations for achieving the most sustainable cleaning process possible.