About AAMI Standards

What if there was more than one standard for sterilizing operating room tools? How would you know that the facility where you received your procedure used the highest standards? That should be a major concern for many of us. We trust that facilities are using the highest standards possible. The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation strives to be the benchmark for these types of procedures.

Identification

• The AAMI has an elaborate standards program. It is made up of at least a 100 committees that recommend standards and procedures related to the use of medical equipment. The scope of the standards group range from how hospital gowns are handled to properly sterilizing surgical tools and every possible technique in between. Committees are open to anyone from device manufacturers to operating room nurses.

Features

• Standards are developed for a variety of reasons. Cost containment is a primary goal. If the safe sterilization of a tool can be done with fewer steps, the standards group evaluates the situation to determine best practices. The standards group also serves as a teaching arm. It educates all stakeholders on new techniques to safely handle medical equipment. Standards also enhance the skill set of the medical practitioner. Health care professionals who can safely and efficiently handle expensive medical equipment are very valuable.

Warning

• The standards developed by AAMI are voluntary. The AAMI acts a guide to best practices through its standards group. The AAMI, however, has no regulatory power to enforce how medical equipment is handled. Manufacturers are smart to adopt AAMI standards, and facilities will have value added when they take heed of new AAMI procedures--although no one is required to do so.

Considerations

• AAMI standards don't automatically occur upon recommendation. Once a new work item is submitted to the standards group, it is channeled to the proper committee. Once the committee has the new standard, it votes among its members as to whether the standard has merit and should be finalized as a formal plan. If the committee adopts the plan, it is created in draft for the general AAMI member to review. Drafts are eventually finalized. The period of review varies by plan.

Significance

• AAMI standards streamline current practices in medical facilities. Without the standardization provided by AAMI, facilities would have to appoint personnel within each organization to complete similar tasks. The lack of coordination across facilities might increase the continuous issue of staph infections in hospitals and other medical facilities.