The Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) remind caregivers that fingerstick devices should never be re-used for more than one person. To view this document click on the following heading: Use of Fingerstick Devices on More Than One Person Poses Risk for Transmitting Bloodborne Pathogens (Update 11/29/2010)
CDC Clinical Reminder: Use of Fingerstick Devices on More Than One Person Poses Risk for Transmitting Bloodborne Pathogens.
This Survey and Certification letter, released August 27, 2010 to State Survey Agencies provides guidance to surveyors on citing deficient infection control practices related to glucometer use in skilled nursing facilities. The letter states in determining compliance at F 441-Infection Control Standards, the following practices are deficiencies in infection control:
Re-using fingerstick devices (e.g., pen-like devices) for more than one resident
Using a blood glucose meter (or other point-of-care device) for more than one resident without cleaning and disinfecting it after use.
If a surveyor observes a facility doing either of the above, the surveyor should follow the interpretive guidelines, investigative protocol, and severity determination information at F441 to determine the severity of the deficiency.
Scope & Severity: CMS is revising the example in Appendix PP to make a distinction between (a) reuse of fingerstick devices for more than one resident (immediate jeopardy) and (b) use of a blood glucose meter for more than one resident without proper cleaning and disinfection, so that scope and severity can be correctly assessed.
The American Health Care Association said members have reported an increased number of immediate-jeopardy citations resulting from failure to clean glucometers between uses.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has updated the interpretive guidelines for F-441, and one example of a deficiency that could be an immediate jeopardy was either failure to change lancets between patients or failure to clean a glucometer between patients. For some time this also has been the policy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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