Despite this reusable hand instruments are almost always chosen over single use ones, with 80 per cent of respondents making exclusive use of them.
In December, 2015, a survey was conducted amongst dental professionals to explore their knowledge and propensity to consider single use versus reusable dental instruments.
The results show that there are a number of key drivers behind the decision by practices to use reusable hand instruments despite the fact that 60 per cent stated that they do not meet all their practice needs.
Cost efficiency was cited as the main reason for adopting reusable instruments, and this was followed by infection prevention, convenience, patient and staff safety, and insufficient knowledge about the potential single use alternatives. Mandatory regulatory requirements and assured instrument quality were also factors which have dissuaded dentists from looking at alternatives to reusable instruments.
There is probably a good reason for this. Single use hand instruments have not been seen as a viable choice. This is despite the fact that single use hand instruments offer a number of significant cost and clinically related benefits:
- Instruments are always new and readily available, free from any wear and tear.
- No cross contamination issues as the instruments are new and unused.
- The whole decontamination process is removed.
- Costs associated with operating washer/disinfectors and autoclaves are eliminated.
- Less time is spent on regulatory compliance.
- Frees up nursing staff involved in the instrument decontamination cycle.
- Clinical staff gain more patient focussed time and the practice can generate additional revenues as a result.
However single use hand instruments have so far failed to play a significant role in general dental practice. Whether perceived poor quality, additional cost or lack of availability of a complete product range, GDP’s have so far failed to adopt the use of single use hand instruments.
The survey has confirmed this view, with 50 per cent of respondents perceiving single use hand instruments to be expensive; 20 per cent reporting a lack of information about single use alternatives; whilst others referred to a perceived poor quality (10 per cent) and adverse environmental impact (10 per cent). The cost effectiveness of having single use and reusable instruments when used alongside each other was also raised as a perceived obstacle.
The survey revealed that a surprising 60 per cent of dentists felt that re-usable hand instruments did not meet all of their practice needs.
What’s more, the same percentage of respondents reported a lack of understanding of the total operating costs associated with reusable instruments and half of them welcomed a free audit of their current costs to identify potential cost savings.
In practice, reusable hand instruments bring about a significant ‘unseen’ financial burden through decontamination and sterilisation (not to mention the increasingly rigorous regulatory demands of HTM01-05 compliance). It is important that practice owners factor in all ‘hidden’ operational costs and technical challenges associated with reusable instrumentation which impact on patient time, place more strain on already pressurised staff, significantly increase practice overheads and ultimately affect the overall profitability of the business.
Reassessing preconceptions
To thank them for their participation in the survey, respondents were offered the opportunity to trial Instrapac premium quality single use hand instruments and see for themselves how they compare clinically with both reusable and other single use instruments they had tried.
The single use instruments they will receive are sample procedure packs from Robinson Healthcare’s Instrapac dental range, already in use in acute and community dental units, Instrapacis now available to general dental practices across the UK.
About Robinson Healthcare’s Instrapac range
Robinson Healthcare’s Instrapac range has been in use for several years across multiple clinical specialties including podiatry, which experienced identical instrument decontamination issues to those faced by the dental profession. Moving into dentistry was therefore a natural progression for the company which has now developed a range of premium quality single use dental instruments to provide dental practitioners with a viable alternative to reusable hand instruments. Robinson Healthcare’s Instrapac single use dental hand instruments are specifically designed for the following clinical specialties:
- Dental hygiene
- Endodontics
- Implantology
- Maxillofacial surgeryOral surgery
- Paediatric dentistryPeriodontology
- Restorative dentistry
For more information please visit www.robinsonhealthcare.com