Achieving best practice in the management of infant-feeding equipment

Carmel Scott; Jenny Bradford; Elizabeth Gillespie

doi:10.1071/HI10013

RESEARCH ARTICLE

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Achieving best practice in the management of infant-feeding equipment

Carmel Scott ^A ^C , Jenny Bradford ^B and Elizabeth Gillespie ^A

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A Monash Medical Centre, Southern Health, Clayton Road, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia.

^B CNC Infection Control, VICNISS Hospital Acquired Infection Surveillance Coordinating Centre, 10 Wreckyn Street, North Melbourne, Victoria 3051, Australia.

^C Corresponding author. Email: carmel.scott@southernhealth.org.au

Healthcare Infection 15(3) 89-92 https://doi.org/10.1071/HI10013
Submitted: 29 March 2010 Accepted: 16 August 2010 Published: 22 September 2010

Abstract

Background: In Australia, there is lack of uniformity in the management of infant-feeding equipment. This issue became apparent at our health service (Southern Health) following a review of special care nurseries at two hospitals. The review was conducted by the Department of Health Victoria (formerly Department of Human Services).

Methods: As a result of the Department of Health review, a literature search was conducted by the infection control team for evidence of contaminated breast-feeding equipment as a source of infection in health facilities and to determine adherence to best practice in the management of this equipment. Contact was made with some Australian hospitals with level 1 or 2 nurseries that may have developed protocols on management of infant-feeding equipment to support our hypothesis of a lack of uniformity in this area. Following this research, a protocol on the management of infant-feeding equipment was developed for Southern Health.

Results: Across Australia, it was found that different healthcare facilities recommended different levels of reprocessing for equipment utilised in the same manner. At the health facilities reviewed by the Department of Health, investigation confirmed that infant-feeding equipment had been incorrectly classified as non-critical medical equipment. Infant-feeding equipment meets the Spaulding classification of semi-critical medical equipment.

Conclusion: Healthcare workers have a duty of care to maintain appropriate infection control principles when mothers use medical equipment to assist them with breast-feeding. Equipment that is re-used for mothers and their babies for the purpose of expressing breast milk and feeding babies must at a minimum undergo high-level disinfection or sterilisation between each use.

References

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