DECONTAMINATION www.inside-hospitals.co.uk
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ccording to Ken Milner director of Audere Medical Services: “Our decision to invest in the development of bespoke software designed for thermal validation to HTM 2010, HTM 2030 and revised HTM 01 has enabled Audere Medical Services to strengthen our position as the largest independent service and validation company in the UK decontamination industry.” A strong statement but an accurate one, according to Ken, who with fellow director Gareth Jones established the company in 1999, knowing they would need to embrace and invest in new technologies. Working with Richard Bridger, director of TQ Solutions, and his team of thermal validation experts based in Canada, TQ-Audere is the result of an ongoing development programme for the validation of a wide range of decontamination equipment.
The software provides a total qualification, reporting and documentation system that will immediately deliver process and productivity benefits to client’s operations. It will provide clients with reporting efficiency, accuracy and accountability, minimise the risk of any human data input errors, provide clients with options for printed or electronic versions of the report and importantly enable authorised engineers to easily determine if the equipment has passed the specified tests. Audere uses its software extensively on a number of client sites across the UK. The accuracy and consistency of the validation package has been well received by sterile services managers, authorised engineers and external auditors. A typically satisfied client is Andrew Fifield, estates manager at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, who said: “We are responsible for all the decontamination equipment used by our NHS trust. The TQAudere validation reports provide our department and external auditors with peace of mind regarding the accuracy and consistency of data.”
Leading the way in decontamination validation technology Innovative software and an experienced team are helping hospitals simplify, streamline and reduce the costs of validation Process Monitoring
Key benefits TQ-Audere offers: • Simple Windows interface requiring minimal training • No application or any other programming requirement • Interfaces to multiple calibration equipment suppliers • Historical trend and tabular data displays • Automatic test data archiving • Customised reporting (integrates existing standard operating procedures report formats) • Electronic validation report compilation and archiving • Acrobat PDF creation for electronic distribution and storage • Electronic signatures, audit trail and security, compliant with UK and European protocols. Audere’s nationwide team of technicians and engineers are all qualified Test Person’s (Decontamination) and trained for all major UK, US and European manufacturers’ equipment. The company specialises in the installation, testing, servicing, commissioning, validation, calibration and upgrading of all types of washer-disinfectors, sterilizers, endoscope reprocessors and decontamination equipment. “Our clients know that ‘One Call Does it All’ when working with Audere,” said Ken. “As departmental budgets are getting squeezed in both the private and public sectors, we have to provide our clients with real value for money without reducing the quality of service. Using TQ-Audere enables us to do this as the software has been designed to integrate with multimanufacturer decontamination equipment.”
TQ-Audere software also includes valuable process monitoring features, all accessible from a user-friendly menu display and fully configurable charts. Using these features Audere’s Test Person’s (Decontamination) can select trace ID intervals, configure limit lines, select individual trace lines, display digital values at the vertical time line, resize, move and update the chart as well as zoom and print, set the number of vertical and horizontal grids, select any probe combination or display calculated variable on the graph, include temperature and pressure scales on the same printout, plot minimum and maximum of groups as well as the ability to plot uncertainty. Calibration and Calibration Checking TQ-Audere simultaneously generates and archives a full and traceable calibration report. Post-test calibration reports are also automated with up to five separate check points selectable. Explaining this process, Ken said: “Stability and deviation criteria is inputted to the software, and when the sensors are detected stable and defined, TQ-Audere will then automatically apply all correction offsets and produce an error analysis and repeatability display.” When using detailed calibration reporting with uncertainty management the TQ Audere software will: • List equipment used • Set Calibration Certificate Reminders • Analysis stability • Summarise status and results • Set-up details as used • Analysis and post calibration errors. Data Management and Archiving TQ-Audere provides a Data
Management utility to enable simple archiving and maintenance of completed test records. Test and set-up data are archived, copied or deleted without recourse to other operating systems. Clients have the option to request archiving at appropriate times or enabling automatic operation during testing. Audit Trail Management The software provides a full suite of controls and features allowing encrypted security management and enabling Electronic Signature and Audit Trail logging. The audit trail is updated automatically by TQ-Audere and will not run if the audit trail is disabled in any way. Audit trail records and lists every relevant data modifications made by the operator and allows reason entry, and records details of changes made, and archives files for restore. TQ-Audere also has Audit Trail maintenance, management and archive functions. So what do the experts have to say about Audere’s use of technology? Richard Bridger, director of TQ Solutions, who works with validation companies around the world, said: “Audere are undoubtedly the most technically aware validation service company around and they lead the market in service quality and efficiency for washer, autoclave and AER validation.” For further information, call Audere Medical Services on 01291 671271, e-mail info@auderemedical.co.uk or visit www.auderemedical.co.uk
Audere directors Ken Milner (left) and Gareth Jones
ENQUIRY NO. 000
00 June 2011 Inside Hospitals
Audere Medical Services Limited Specialists in Decontamination Technology