many times the masks have been disinfected and drop them off in a
temporary disinfecting station set up in a physician conference room
next to the back door where staff arrive and leave each day. The
masks are treated with two five-minute cycles (front and back) and
placed in a clean bag for pick up the next morning.
During procedures involving aerosolization, which can occur dur-
ing upper endoscopies and intubation/extubation, staff at LSDC
must wear face shields and isolation gowns in addition to N95
masks. The center currently has adequate supplies of PPE, but
shortages are a constant concern.
"Materials management is in constant communication with clinical
staff members, who provide a running total of PPE supplies," says
Ms. Williams. "We've fulfilled requests based on daily needs."
In addition to wearing a surgical mask over an N95 mask, staff at
UConn Health Surgery Center must wear a face shield whenever they
interact with patients, including in pre-op and the PACU.
Patients at both surgery centers are required to wear masks at all
times during their stay.
• Focusing on surface cleaning. Instead of swooping into ORs as
soon as cases end to prepare the rooms for the next patient, staff at
LSDC now wait outside while a UV-C light-emitting robot completes
two 10-minute disinfection cycles. Staff wait 15 minutes after the
robot completes its work to allow one complete air exchange to
occur. They then enter the room to terminally clean flat surfaces,
equipment and supplies, the anesthesia machine, walls and floors.
To account for the additional time these new cleaning regimens
require, LSDC doubled the time typically allotted to scheduled pro-
cedures.
The surgery center's staff have also been instructed to regularly
clean high-traffic areas. When patients leave the lobby for the pre-op
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