Sterilization & Disinfection Flashcards
Define an antiseptic
Disinfectant used on the skin.
What does a bactericidal do?
Kill bacteria.
What does a bacteriostatic do?
Inhibit bacterial growth (doesn’t kill bacteria).
Define a disinfectant
Chemical used to destroy many microorganisms & viruses on surfaces.
What does a fungicide do?
Kills fungi.
Describe pasteurization
Heating something briefly to reduce the # of microorganisms & kill any pathogenic organisms.
Define sanitization
Reduction of the # of organisms to a level that meets public health standards.
Define sterilization
Destruction of ALL forms of microorganisms, including spores.
What does a viricide do?
Inactivates viruses.
What does it mean when a room has an air lock?
You must open a door from the corridor to enter an anteroom and wait until the corridor door shuts behind you before you can open the door to enter the patient’s room.
Describe a positive pressure room and a situation it would be used in
Air from the corridor can’t get into the room. Used for patients who are very susceptible to infection.
Describe a negative pressure room & a situation it would be used in
Air from the room can’t escape into the corridor. Used for patients who have very infectious diseases.
What is the most important consideration that determines the efficiency of sterilization?
Whether or not the object being sterilized is free of organic matter.
Briefly describe the process of autoclaving
Putting the object being sterilized into a chamber that will release hot (121ºC, 15 psi) steam for 15 minutes.
How do we ensure that autoclaving has properly sterilized our object?
Spore test: Bacillus spores in a control ampule with pH-indicating growth media are put in the autoclave with the object being sterilized. After sterilization, the ampule is put into warm water to culture the spores. If there is a colour change, the spores have germinated/are growing & the sterilization was NOT effective.
