Knowledge of nursing students at the University North about the sterilization of medical equipment and supplies

Sterilizacija i dezinfekcija djelotvorni su postupci u borbi protiv infekcija. Ovi se pojmovi često neprecizno definiraju, a to uvjetuje pogrešnu provedbu postupaka u praksi. Sterilizacija je postupak kojim se uništavaju svi živi oblici mikroorganizama i njihove spore, na predmetima koji se steriliziraju – instrumenti, zavojni materijal, tekstil, tekućine, itd. Postoje više vrsta sterilizacije. Svaka vrsta ima svoje specifičnosti koje je potrebno znati za pravilan rad u sterilizaciji. Stoga, potrebno je imati znanja o pravilima zaprimanja instrumenata na odjel, poznavanje izgleda instrumenata, vrsti kontrola sterilnosti, vrsti materijala, načinu umatanja instrumenata i ostale medicinske opreme, kako se sterilni instrumenti i ostali materijal razvrstavaju, kamo se odlaže sterilni materijal, kakvi uvjeti moraju biti u svim zonama sterilizacije, kako se sve dokumentira i još mnogo toga. Iz navedenih razloga u okviru diplomskog rada provedeno je istraživanje o razini znanja studenata Sestrinstva, Sveučilišta Sjever, o sterilizaciji medicinske opreme i pribora. Cilj ovog istraživanja bio je saznati koliko znanja studenti preddiplomskog i diplomskog studija Sestrinstva, Sveučilišta Sjever, imaju o sterilizaciji medicinske opreme i pribora te da se dokaže koliko je potrebno dodatno obrazovanje o sterilizaciji teorijski, ali i dodatno obrazovanje za rad na tom odjelu, jer je medicinskim sestrama/tehničarima multidisciplinarno znanje vrlo bitno u svakodnevnom radu. Iako niti jedna od četiri hipoteze nije prihvaćena, može se zaključiti da ispitanici preddiplomskog studija imaju nešto niži nivo znanja o sterilizaciji u odnosu na ispitanike diplomskog studija. Medicinske sestre/tehničari koji rade na odjelu Centralne sterilizacije, moraju biti stručno i kvalitetno educirani za posao koji rade. To se može potvrditi dobivenim odgovorima u prikazanom istraživanju, gdje potrebu za dodatnom edukacijom o sterilizaciji medicinske opreme i pribora, u okviru pojedinih kolegija, iskazuje 92 od 105 studenta.Sterilization and disinfection are effective procedures in the fight against infections. These terms are often imprecisely defined, which leads to incorrect implementation of procedures in practice. Sterilization is a procedure that destroys all living forms of microorganisms and their spores, on object which are sterilized - instruments, bandages, textiles, liquids, etc. There are several types of sterilization. Each type has its own specifics that need to be known for proper sterilization work. Therefore, it is necessary to have knowledge about the rules for receiving instruments in the department, knowledge of the appearance of instruments, type of sterility controls, type of material, method of wrapping instruments and other medical equipment, how sterile instruments and other material are classified, where sterile material is disposed of, what conditions must to be in all sterilization zones, how everything is documented and much more. Because of that reasons, as part of my graduation thesis, research was conducted on the level of knowledge of Nursing students, University of the North, about the sterilization of medical equipment and accessories. The aim of this research was to find out how much knowledge the students of Nursing studies, University of the North, have about the sterilization of medical equipment and accessories, and to prove how much additional education on sterilization is needed theoretically, but also additional education for working in that department, because medical nurses must have multidisciplinary knowledge which is very important in daily work. Although none of the four hypotheses was not accepted, we can conclude that undergraduate study respondents have a lower level of knowledge about sterilization, compared to graduate study respondents. Nurses who works in the Central Sterilization Department must be professionally and well-educated for the work they do. This can be confirmed by the answers obtained in research, where the need for additional education about the sterilization of medical equipment and accessories, within the framework of certain courses, is expressed by 92 out of 105 students