Bryan Foss from HealthFirst Discusses Sharps Management
While at the Chicago Midwinter Meeting, Bryan Foss, Product Manager of Environment and Practice Compliance at HealthFirst, spoke about the company’s sharps management product line.
Foss comes with an extensive background in the waste industry and was instrumental in the development of HealthFirst's Sharp Management, Medical Waste Management, Amalgam and Pharmaceutical Waste Recovery product lines.
With infection control and the safety of patients, staff, and the dentist as top priorities in dental practices, sharps management became a topic that deserved to be in the spotlight. At the very beginning of the conversation, he addressed what makes HealthFirst so unique in comparison to other waste disposal options, saying,
“We believe that our customers should be in control and should only pay for what they use. Other companies that operate using a pick-up service often come with hidden fees, such as fuel or extra waste charges. Customers are usually already tied into long-term contacts with these companies, too. At HealthFirst, there are no contracts, no hidden fees, and no surprises.”
With HealthFirst, sharps recovery is conducted via mail-back, which offers huge cost savings for customers.
“Depending on the contract, pick-up services could cost between $1500 and $2500,” explained Foss. “Our mail-back service costs about $500.”
Aside from costs, customers can build a process for regular sharps waste disposal, receive digital certificates of destruction, and increase their overall level of compliance using the OnTraQ Compliance Manager, an exclusive online tool offered at no additional charge. Foss noted that HealthFirst offers a complete solution to sharps management and compliance management.
The OSHA-compliant containers only need to be returned when full and are easily returned using a prepaid return box. Foss noted that the 8-gallon container is the number 1 seller. “It is the ideal option to help dispose of old sharps containers and offers a safer way of transporting and ridding of waste.” The large container is used to ship back smaller containers that do not have a disposal service tied to the container. As Foss put it, “It’s a compliance enabler.” Containers are also available in 1-quart, 5-quart, and 2-gallon, 3-gallon, and 18-gallon.
As the conversation wrapped up, Foss shared,
“The ultimate goal is to provide a safer environment for employees and patients in the office.”
OSHA estimates that over 5 million healthcare workers are at risk every day due to occupational exposure to bloodborne pathogens. Each year, an estimated 384,000 skin punture injuries are sustained from needles and other sharp devices. As a healthcare professional, minimizing this risk of injury to you and your staff is extremely important.
Does your office staff follow ADA recommendations and CDC guidelines for proper sterilization?
Since 1993, the ADA and the CDC have updated their infection control guidelines to properly reflect new scientific knowledge and understanding of infection prevention. They urge all practicing dental professionals to employ infection control procedures, properly sterlize instruments and surfaces, and only use FDA-cleared dental handpieces, sterilized according to manufacturer instructions.
OSHA's Best Management Practices for Sharps Handling and Disposal:
Accessibility:
Place container in a visible location within easy horizontal reach and below eye level
The ideal ergonomic opening of the sharps container height is 5'2-5'6.
Visibility:
Workers should be able to easily determine if the container is full
Closure Mechanism:
Designed to minimize exposure to contents and injury to the hand during use
Final closure mechanism should be resistant to manual opening
Availability:
Make a sufficient quantity of sharps available at all times
Provide a minimum of one sharps disposal container at each worksite where sharps are predictably generated or located