Southern Cross Hospital in Wellington moves to maceration in zero tolerance approach to infection

Move to Maceration

Sally Whitehead, Ward Manager of Southern

Southern Cross Hospitals in Wellington has replaced its bedpan washers with a macerator as part of its zero tolerance approach to infection.

With Cultural safety and infection control as prime drivers, The Vernacare "Vortex" macerator has been installed in Southern Cross Hospitals' Wellington facility as part of its infection prevention strategy. "Vernacare is excellent as it addresses our concern for infection control", said Ward Manager, Sally Whitehead. " Previously we used a combination of systems, combining a sanitiser with washing and disinfecting (for those items that didn't fit in our sanitiser). We were not happy with this system and were even considering a second sanitiser. The Vernacare macerator was a cost-effective option and met infection control standards."

With the potential for exposure to a range of viruses and other pathogens, on a daily basis, there is a obviously a determination to work to minimise exposure for patients and medical professionals alike.

"Initially, our staff was a bit sceptical about the pulp receptacle. Having used the product, they have seen some very positive results and recognise the time saved in waste disposal, with no rinsing required and the saving in nursing time". All patients at Southern Cross Wellington now benefit from clean, single-use pulp bed pans and urine bottles, which disintegrate and wash down the drain with cold water after maceration.

There is also an environmental benefit to maceration, which runs on a speedy 2-minute cold water cycle, and is therefore cheaper and more environmentally friendly to run than washers, which require a lot of energy forheating. Added Sally Whitehead: " EBOS, distributor of the Vernacare 'Vortex" macerator naturally supplied training and on-going support, which all adds up to a great system."