Sterilization Success: A Blueprint for Ambulatory Care Settings

Session Description: The cleaning and sterilization of reusable instruments in the ambulatory care setting is a common practice often managed by personnel with insufficient or no training. The lack of standardization, coupled with little to no oversight of sterilization processes, poses significant safety risks to both patients and healthcare workers. To address this issue, the infection prevention department of a large medical group, comprising of over 350 locations, developed and implemented a standardized cleaning and sterilization program. The program aimed to reduce the risk of harm to patients and healthcare workers by addressing clinic workflows, establishing standard procedures, and providing education to ensure healthcare workers have the necessary knowledge and tools to competently perform sterilization processes across various medical office settings. An audit process was also created to validate compliance with these standards and ensure sustainability, supported by a metric dashboard for feedback.

Kelli Heisner

Manager, Infection Prevention, Advocate Health Care

Kelli Heisner, MSN, RN, CIC is the manager of Infection Prevention for Advocate Medical Group a part of Advocate Health. She has been certified in infection prevention for more than 13 years. Since joining the Advocate Medical Group infection prevention team in 2015, Kelli has been instrumental in developing and advancing the ambulatory care infection prevention program, with a strong emphasis on sterilization and high-level disinfection practices. Prior to her current role, Kelli worked as an infection preventionist in an acute care setting. Kelli is an active member of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) at both the national and local level. She has previously served as the education committee chair for APIC Chicago and contributed as a policy writer for the APIC PolicyPro Ambulatory section.

Lynn Skelton

Director, Infection Prevention, Advocate Health

Lynn Skelton, RN, BSN, CIC, is Director of Infection Prevention for Advocate Health’s Medical Group and Home Health/Hospice teams in Illinois and Wisconsin. With 31 years of certification in infection control and epidemiology, Lynn has led infection prevention programs in acute care and, since 2015, has developed and expanded outpatient and home health/hospice initiatives to over 500 locations, including multi-specialty, primary care, dental, ambulatory surgery centers, and home health and hospice settings. She is an active member of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), a former President of APIC Chicago, and policy reviewer for APIC Policy Pro. Lynn currently serves on the National APIC Home Care Task Force, the SHEA Ambulatory Special Interest Group, and as a National APIC consultant.

Silvera Ford

Infection Prevention Nurse 3, The University of Kansas Health System

Silvera Ford is a Board-Certified Infection Preventionist at The University of Kansas Health System. In this role, she collaborates across disciplines to ensure patients are cared for in a manner that prevents the spread of infection. Preventing infections is her passion. Some of her responsibilities include partnering with perioperative and procedural areas, construction liaison and overseeing the quality assurance program for high level disinfection. For the last twenty-three years, Silvera has been an Infection Preventionist during which time she has been an active member of the local and national Association of Professionals in Infection Control (APIC). Silvera is currently the Past-President for the local Greater Kansas City APIC Chapter and member of the national APIC Annual Conference Committee. She also has experience in presenting to diverse audiences at the local, national and international levels.