Authors (including presenting author) :
Y. R. Tso
Affiliation :
Hong Kong Hospital Authority – New Territories West Cluster (Hong Kong) Sterile Services Department (SSD)
Keyword 1: :
Staff training
Keyword 2: :
Staff training
Keyword 3: :
Training program
Keyword 4: :
Sterile services department
Keyword 5: :
Central sterile supply department
Keyword 6: :
Sterile processing department
Introduction :
The Sterile Services Department (SSD) implements an instrument reprocessing system for reusable medical devices, aligned with ISO 13485, to manage safety and effectiveness, in which staff training is a key factor for personnel involved in sterilization. In line with the departmental vision of being a professional disinfection and sterilization service provider, a multi-tier training framework was developed to improve sterile service delivery in a volatile manpower environment (NHS England, 2024).
Objectives :
This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the training system on service quality using the Quality Index (QI), defined as the proportion of near-miss cases related to operating theater (OT) surgical instruments over the total OT instrument workload generated from the tracking system.
Methodology :
NTWC SSD includes three hospitals (Tuen Mun Hospital, Pok Oi Hospital, Tin Shui Wai Hospital) under a structured training system, consisting of: (1) a structured 1‑on‑1 orientation preceptorship of at least nine weeks for all new staff; (2) a six‑week Tier I in-house course, scheduled quarterly, covering departmental overview, infection control, OSH, SSD workflow, basic decontamination and management storage, with written assessment and certification; and (3) a regularly organized Tier II program for supervisors and management professionals, focusing on advanced decontamination science, accreditation, operational, financial concepts and quality management system curriculums. The training system was supplemented by weekly nearly missed reviews for supporting staff and routine audits of SOP compliance to align with ISO 13485 requirements on training, competence, and documented records (ISO, 2016).
Result & Outcome :
From November 2024 to November 2025, the NTWC SSD Quality Index remained low across all three hospitals, with monthly QI indexes ranging from 0.06–0.24% in Tuen Mun Hospital, 0.07–0.24% in Pok Oi Hospital and 0.00–0.25% in Tin Shui Wai Hospital, indicating a low proportion of nearly missed cases relative to OT instrument training workload under the structured system. Stable low QI levels align with systematic training frameworks in the Sterile Services Department which significantly enhance cleaning, disinfection, and sterilization qualification rates and reduce quality issues (Yang et al., 2022). Furthermore, departments accredited to ISO 13485 must maintain formal training and competency assessment programs for production and quality staff, and continuous staff training is a critical control measure to reduce sterilization defects and enhance overall process reliability in sterile processing services (Fast et al., 2019).
