Decontamination in primary care dental practices - Gov.uk

5 Setting up a decontamination area5 Setting up a decontamination area5.1 There is a clear need to maximise the separation ofdecontamination work from clinical activity withinthe constraints of space and room availability.Where instruments are reprocessed in the sameroom as the patient treatment area, the reprocessingarea should be as far from the dental chair aspracticality allows. As dental practices progresstowards higher standards, removing thedecontamination process from the treatment roomshould be a priority. For example layouts, seeFigures 1–3.5.2 If decontamination has to be carried out in apatient treatment room, to minimise the risks bothto the patient and of cross-contamination ofinstruments, appropriate controls should be inplace. Uncontrolled procedures that generate therisk of exposure to aerosol dispersion or splashes(such as manual washing, the use of an ultrasoniccleaner without a sealed chamber (or lid) or theopening of decontamination equipment) shouldNOT take place while the patient is present.5.3 Regardless of the choice of location used for thereprocessing facilities, a dirty-to-clean workflowshould be maintained so that used instrumentsare at a lower risk of coming into contact withdecontaminated instruments. This requires awell-developed routine for surface cleaning/decontamination within the facilities:VentilationinputVentilationextraction oroutputWash-handbasin(optional)OUT(optional,dependentupon spaceand layout)Inspectionand storageCLEANZONEInspectand,whereapplicable,packSterilizerDIRTYZONEDeliverWash-handbasinOUTINKeyRinsingsinkUltrasoniccleaner(optional)WashingsinkInstrument flowAirflowNotes1. The use of an ultrasonic cleaner is optional. Where such a cleaner is not provided,handling difficulties will be reduced by siting the washing sink near to the rinsing sink orby combining both sinks through the installation of a double-bowl sink assembly.2. Practices may increase the number of sterilizers if capacity and service continuitydictates.Figure 1 Example layout for essential quality requirements29