The journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, in its Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology report states that drug dispensing robots that can synthesize intravenous medications instantly in a sterile environment can possess dangerous bacteria.
North Carolina-based Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center personnel found Bacillus cereus bacteria in samples that were dispensed by Intellifill IV machine, during a routine screening in 2010.
Bacillus is a harmful bacterium that is resistant to disinfectants like alcohol.
Using producer-recommended quality assurance measures, personnel discovered the contamination, prior to implementation in order to prevent patients from being harmed by the contaminated drugs. The impacts of contaminated intravenous products can cause risks and threat to life such as harmful bloodstream infections. However through proper maintenance and regular cleaning of machines, these contaminations can be avoided to some extent.
The machine’s washing station and the tubing associated with it was found to be contaminated. This area is quite negligible as it is not recognized as a sterile part of the robot. Additionally, there is no specific cleaning procedure recommended by the manufacturer for these parts. However, these inaccessible parts can be cleaned using a spray bottle.
The authors noted that the manufacturer need to mention a formal procedure for cleaning and maintaining the washing station, recommendations should be given to change the container, drain tube, and the washing station, so that users of machines such as Intellifill IV can prevent such contamination problem. In addition, quality assurance recommendations need to be provided for carrying out air sampling and surface testing of the washing station in the center of the compartment. The robot placed in the pharmacy's clean room can help reduce contamination risks.
Source: http://www.shea-online.org/