How to Properly Clean Equipment for CNA Skills Test
- 1). Review your notes from class. Before performing CNA practical test, go through the checklist for each of the procedures chosen by the examiner. Review the checklist and memorize the steps. Check that you have all the materials and tools for cleaning the medical equipment.
- 2). Put on personal protective equipment (PPE) beginning with the gown. Tie it at the neck and waist, and put the face mask over your nose and mouth. If your have goggles, wear them but check that they do not interfere with your vision. Wear vinyl or nitrile rubber gloves, and make sure that the cuffs of the glove cover your wrist and go over the gown.
- 3). Fix a clean wire mesh basket inside a deep container such as a clean bucket. Fill the bucket with clean tap water. Apply detergent to the water and stir it up it briefly for about one minute.
- 4). Soak the instruments you are cleaning in the water-filled bucket so that they are suspended by the wire-mesh basket. The level of contamination of the equipment may require that you soak the equipment prior to cleaning such as those used in operating theaters. Agitate the wire mesh basket for about three to five minutes.
- 5). Lift the basket and remove it from the bucket. Overturn the basket to lay the instruments onto a tray or a table. Separate the equipment into two -- those that require disassembling and those that do not.
- 6). Disassemble equipment with numerous parts. Scrub them (as well as those that do not require disassembling) with a soft brush, water and detergent to remove any foreign particles. Brush through the joints, grooves and teeth where dirt can accumulate and stick. Hold the instruments under water surface to prevent water or dirt splashing on you.
- 7). Wash out or flush jet water through any tubing, or lumen. Rinse the items thoroughly with clean water to take out the detergent. If detergent remains, it can interfere or reduce the effectiveness of the remaining steps of cleaning the equipment. Inspect all the equipment you are cleaning to verify that they are clean.
- 8). Set the equipment on a tray or table, and allow them to air dry. Wipe them dry with a clean towel if you plan on disinfecting them further using chemical disinfectant. This is will prevent diluting the chemical solutions used. On the other hand, if you plan on boiling them or steaming them up, then you don not need to wipe them dry.
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