Loaner autoclaves may be no more

The convenience of borrowing an autoclave from your supplier in the event of a problem with your practice's unit may soon become a thing of the past.

Following the recent publication of the revised Standard AS/NZS 4187:2003 and the anticipated adaptation/revision of the "office version AS/NZS 4815", there has been intense discussion on how "loaner" autoclaves fit into the picture.

Loan units have generally been available to practices at no charge if a problem occurs during the warranty period and some suppliers offer paid loan arrangements for out-of-warranty periods.

Under the new standard, loaner autoclaves must have a current calibration record and then, as the unit arrives at the practice, a validation cycle should be run to establish that everything is in good order. This way the practice staff is assured that "the use of the loaner unit" is up to their expectation.

The costs of providing the calibration record each and every time the unit is loaned costs between $500 and $600.

The loan unit should also preferably be of the same make/model to allow all the operating staff to use their routine procedures and not to have to undergo lengthy familiarisation of a differing regimen which would include record keeping in the accustomed manner which is now essential for legal reasons.

Some dentists will remember only a few years ago that handpieces were also regularly loaned, however, these practices ceased once hygiene/sterilisation requirements increased and so the need to have more than one per practice.

As with handpieces, it may become the norm for all practices to have a second autoclave, just in case.

Provision of loaner units has a price tag attached to it apart from the need to check/validate the equipment and routine record keeping.