CSSD (Central Sterile Supply)

2026-02-01 · 4 min

Overview

The Central Sterile Supply Department (CSSD) module manages the complete instrument sterilisation lifecycle -- from receipt of dirty instruments to issue of sterile packs. It ensures traceability, quality assurance, and compliance with infection control standards.

Instrument Tracking

Track every instrument through the sterilisation cycle:

1. Receive: Dirty instruments arrive from OT, wards, or departments. Record the source, instrument set, and condition.
2. Decontamination: Washing and cleaning with method documentation (manual, ultrasonic, washer-disinfector).
3. Inspection & Packing: Check instruments for cleanliness and function. Assemble into sets and wrap/pack with chemical indicators.
4. Sterilisation: Load into the autoclave. Record cycle parameters (temperature, pressure, duration, operator).
5. Storage: Sterile packs stored with expiry date tracking.
6. Issue: Issue sterile packs to OT or departments with recipient acknowledgment.

Each step is timestamped for full traceability.

Steriliser Management

Manage autoclave and steriliser equipment:

• Equipment registry: Type, model, capacity, installation date.
• Cycle logging: Auto-capture or manual entry of temperature, pressure, and duration.
• Biological indicator (BI) testing: Spore test results recording with pass/fail documentation.
• Chemical indicator (CI) verification at each cycle.
• Bowie-Dick test: Daily air removal test logging for pre-vacuum autoclaves.
• Maintenance: Preventive maintenance scheduling and breakdown logging.

Recall Management

If a sterilisation cycle fails quality checks:

1. The system flags all packs from that load.
2. Issued packs trigger recall notifications to the receiving departments.
3. Unused recalled packs are returned for re-sterilisation.
4. Used recalled packs trigger a patient exposure investigation.
5. The incident is documented and linked to the infection control module.

Reporting

CSSD reports include: Daily cycle logs, instrument turnaround time, BI/CI compliance rates, load utilisation, instrument lifecycle (usage count, repair history), and NABH-format sterilisation audit reports.

Notes

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