Sterilization Standards Unpacked - What's Next for Dental Sterilization?

0:00Hello and welcome to Sterilization Standards Unpacked, Navigating Canada's Dental Guidelines. Where we'll talk about the evolution of dental sterilization, the people shaping it, and the standards guiding it forward. I'm your host, Sarah B. Cruz, and in every episode we'll connect innovation to intention. Because progress in dentistry doesn't just happen. It's built through consistency, clarity, and care. We'll explore the practices that protect patients, the standards that impact process, and the professionals who set the tone for excellence. Whether you're in the operator, the sterilization room, or leading a team. This space is for those who believe that quality isn't a check box. It's a mindset. Sterilization standards unpacked, Navigating Canada's Dental Guidelines is supported by Solventum, creating smarter, safer ways to deliver health care, and advancing the future of dentistry

1:00through innovation and education. So let's get ready to get dirty and go gentle. Hello, Bonjour, and welcome to the final episode of Sterilization Standards Unpacked, presented by Solventum. I cannot believe we are already on the final episode of this podcast series. I think we could have gone easily 20, 25 more episodes of hanging out with me talking about dental sterilization, but as someone in America where we are just starting our standardization and really diving into assisting this streamlined process of dental practices, I have learned so much with just hanging out with my Canadian friends, and really watching the power of collaboration and consistency across an entire nation. As we've learned in these last few weeks, we've explored standards, the science,

2:04and honestly, the people behind sterilization. But today, we're looking forward at how the future of dental sterilization in Canada is being shaped by education, technology, and teamwork. Because you know what, folks? Future is not a mystery. It's a maintenance schedule. And as we always say, innovation is progress made practical. And practical progress doesn't come from a box. It's built one verification cycle at a time. And with someone who has an aunt as a dental hygienist, and I was able to teach her a few things just getting my sterile processing certification, or should I say medical device reprocessing certification. If I can teach her a few things, imagine the impact that Canada can have on patient care all throughout this nation and trickle into, you know, our standards. I'm very excited. So as we start to talk about the future, I have a very special guest with us.

3:06We have Leanne Ismail, clinical specialist for sterilization at Sylventum. And she covers from the acute to the dental. From start to finish, she's with you to the end. And during this time, she's really helping with that next wave of progress. And making sure it's less about rewriting standards, and more about embedding them in software, in education, and in the daily practices that we may actually see as patients in these dental spaces. So without further ado, Leanne, everyone. Sarah, thank you so much. Hi, everyone. It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you. Super excited. Now, Leanne, you hung out with us before on the Beyond Clean Canada podcast, yeah? I did. Yes, it was a great time. We had some good discussions on sterilization in the acute space as well, and kind of where things were heading in that space. So it's nice to be able to do this on the dental side today.

4:06Yeah, and I feel so flattered to be involved in it, truly. And I remember listening to the episode, and you were talking about that. And the biggest takeaway I got from that is that improvement comes with integration, not reinvention. And even though we're talking about dental, you know, it's all sterilization. And I said at the beginning of this podcast series, that I think we should start recognizing our sterilizers just a little bit more every day because of just truly what an amazing piece of equipment that they are. And the amount of work that goes behind, well, making sure they work, you know what I mean? Absolutely. You're right. And a lot of the times I think we take that stuff for granted. We don't really realize the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes. And everything that goes on in reprocessing. Yeah. And so one question I initially have that's kind of been ruminating in my head as we've interviewed our other guests is in your opinion,

5:08do you think the massive scaling that's been, oh, I guess that's pun intended. The massive scaling that's happening throughout Canada is because of the CSA's Z314 2023 updates. Or do you think it had enough momentum in 2018? That's a great question, Sarah. I think that addition specifically, the CSA standards Z314, it made a big impact because they included actually a really important detail finally in that updated revision in 2023. So they had actually included some new information on how to make PCDs or process challenge devices in-house for tabletop sterilizers. So in dental, this was pretty significant because as we know, most dental offices use tabletop sterilizers and we really never had set guidance on how to properly make one for these tabletop sterilizers.

6:11So I think having that included in the new standards, it definitely trickled in to some of these other provinces and education-wise. So we've definitely seen it have an impact throughout provinces actually here. You know, and can we just take a second listeners? Just let's just take a second there. Making packs for tabletop sterilizers. I remember learning about how to make packs for the big boy sterilizers, you know, with the St. Joseph's Cross and everything and the number towels and everything like that. And I learned how to do that, but I can honestly say I've never done that before in my sterile processing career. I fortunately never had to do that. So, but the fact that it's 2020, I'm sorry. So the fact that it's 2025 and this is the big innovation, the big movement, I think we should all really appreciate just how far medical device reprocessing had to come

7:12in order to help different professions like dental. Absolutely Sarah, I couldn't agree more. We've definitely come a long way and obviously they're still work to be done, but we're moving in the right direction. Yeah, you know, and I think that's a really great segue for the whole topic of this episode. You know, technology is reshaping how we verify and validate and rapid re- I'm sorry. You know, and I think that's a really great way, you know, and I think that's a really great segue for the whole topic of this podcast episode is that technology is reshaping how we verify and validate, you know, rapid re- BI's integrated data logging and digital traceability are moving from hospitals to dental practices. Things that are happening in medical device reprocessing as second nature are now this new age wave, dare I say. So imagine seeing your sterilizers history

8:17like a patient chart, clean, clear, and complete. You know, every cycle of progress starts with that clarity and that's where we're moving to is that future. So Liam, if you had to tell me what you would like to see in the next 10 years in dental, what would you tell me? Oh, that is a great question, Sarah. I think as you mentioned, traceability is super important in having some sort of tracking system be involved. I think is going to be the new wave of the future. We've done that pretty well in a hospital and acute settings so far, but I think honestly moving into dental, seeing a little bit more of that technology, being involved in what they do on a daily basis would be tremendous. We do still see a lot of the original paper log books and dental, but the issue we have with these is, you know, sometimes it's hard to read writing,

9:19sometimes patients or sorry papers fall out of these log books, things go missing. So I think that's why a lot of standards are also pushing towards some sort of electronic copies, digital tracking systems for these reasons specifically. Just to have everything, as you mentioned, stored on one nice file on a PC, you can easily retrieve it, and it's also there is a secondary or a backup. Hopefully that's something that we can continue to work towards in the dental world. Yeah, you know, and I couldn't agree more. I remember reading from the Health Canada Devices page about the Health Canada MDR 2020, and they support data integrity and traceability for electronic records in their sterilization monitoring. So you had the 2018 CSA Z314, and then in 2020, Health Canada went even further to say, no, no, we have to get this in there.

10:19And then 2023 said, yep, absolutely. Let's put this right where we needed to be inside of the standard document. So the progression is there. It is there. And I think eventually and hopefully I think that will be at some point who knows it might even be something that's mandatory, moving forward to have these electronic copies. That could be the new wave of the future, but it'll be pretty interesting to see where it goes. Oh, I like that. I like when we throw mandatory or regulatory around. I like that. I like those firm have to must words. That's right. You could ought to as I'd rather have a must, you know what I mean? So you know, all right, Leanne and listeners, we're going to take a quick break for a word from our sponsor. And of course, our last practice defined term session. We'll be right back. It's time for practice to find a quick pause to unpack a key term shaping dental sterilization

11:23and safety. Let's talk preventative maintenance intervals. A preventative maintenance interval or PMI is the scheduled inspection and servicing of sterilizers and washer disinfecters based on manufacturer instructions and the expectations outlined in CSA, Z314. Regular PMIs help detect where, calibrate instruments and document ongoing equipment validation. In Canada, dental practice PMI support quality audits and demonstrate a continuous commitment to safe reprocessing. That's practice defined. Now that we're one term closer to excellence, let's jump back in today's episode. Hi everybody and thanks for joining us after that short break. And I still can't believe we're on this last episode, but we are very fortunate to have Leanne is mill with us. And she is the

12:29clinical specialist for sterilization with solventum. Now before the break, Leanne and I were discussing what she would like to see in the next 10 years for the dental sterilization world. And I am loving this conversation because she's already talking 10 years into the future and in America, we're at day one. And I'm thrilled. I'm thrilled. You know, so this is this is great. I just love thinking about the future and progress and moving forward and challenging the way we've always done things. So I think this is my favorite episode so far, Leanne. I got to tell you. So well, thank you Sarah. I found this stuff super exciting to you. Yes, listen, we're just a bunch of MDR nerds. Okay, we're just hanging out, getting a little nerdy, talking about sterilization, whether it's a tabletop, I had a tabletop. We called their big bertha. If you didn't venture fast enough, she got really angry, but you love it. You know, so I digress. So let's get really into this now. When we talk about updating standards or

13:37processes, you know, besides the fact that things are different from different provinces throughout the nation, you know, and in America, state to state, when you start to look at all those subsections of how we're going to play, what we're going to do, it really makes you wonder how everyone can get on that same page. So in your opinion, how do you think manufacturers and clinicians can partner for progress? We've already partnered this far to get us here, but what do you think needs to get done further? That's a great question, Sarah. And what ultimately I would love to see for both sides is to create compatibility through obviously the tools that we need for sterilization, but also the standards and guidelines. Make those compatible in order for us to move forward in the way that basically CSA standards cover the acute care center. So you hit the nail on the

14:40head when you mentioned that here, each province, their guidelines do differ ever so slightly in terms of how often, for example, a BIPCD or a BITESPAC should be run. There are some provinces that still require it only monthly, believe it or not. So I would love, ideally, to see moving forward, all these provinces to adopt the same expectations and standards that we have in the acute care center, right? Ultimately sterilization should be the same across the board. Race the bars, so we're all on that same page, but that would be the ideal case. And recently we have had provinces actually moving towards changing their provincial guidelines to actually meet CSA standards exactly. So it's been super exciting to watch over the last couple months. Most recently, actually, we had Manitoba jump on board. We've had Albert and make some changes. Cabette was another big one. So we're all

15:44starting to see these provinces move forward in that direction. We're lacking a couple more, but I'm hoping the future is bright for all our provinces, and we will move to one specific standard across the board. I mean, I would hardly say that's a stretch goal. I think that's just going the extra kilometer, right? So really pushing for that. And if you all can recall our previous episode with our guest from Montreal, where he discussed the facility actually aligning more with the CSA standards and pushing past their provincial goals and expectations, you know, it is possible. And there are people in professionals and entire clinics that are that, well, I guess you can call that tenacious, Hanley. Absolutely. And vigilant to want to obviously provide better care for the patients themselves, right? And hopefully from the manufacturers and let's simplify

16:44tools and solutions to make reaching these goals, standards, and guidelines possible. Right. And I think it really harmonizes the ongoing alignment between all the provincial colleges, right? They talk about that in the ODQ. I won't try to say it because it's French, and I will not be rude. But, you know, and you see that in 2023 to 2024 where they're pushing for that they're encouraging the harmonization of policy language. They want to achieve nation-wide standardization in dental sterilization practices. And I think that's ambitious because I mean, we can't even all call ourselves the same name, you know, central sterile process. Again, you know, I love a good challenge like that. And that's right. And obviously, like you said, there are different, you know, slightly different limitations, especially space usually for sterilization being a major factor for dental. But ultimately, I think we all have that same goal in mind.

17:49It's making sure that devices are properly sterilized to use on patients regardless of what field we're in. Definitely. You know, it's all about how collaboration is driving that innovation and that unity. So thinking of that implementation, you know, and you said space, so, you know, let's lean into that. How do you think smaller clinics can adopt this digital verification? Some of these alignment opportunities in the verification process and really afford themselves that higher quality of patient care. Right. And that's a great question. And honestly, I think that comes down to the manufacturer and what the manufacturer can provide for the customers. So I can speak on behalf, of course, of ourselves here at Solventum. So, you know, for example, we have auto readers, our 490 mini auto reader, for example, it has a really small footprint, literally about the size of the palm of your hand. Doesn't take up a lot of space,

18:52swise in a small device reprocessing area. But it also comes with an app, right. An online electronic app that they can use. So as long as they just are able to download this app, it essentially replaces a paper logbook. So it's things like that that clinics can do. And again, most of these apps are usually free of charge to kind of help elevate their practices. Again, as we mentioned, going electronically to even be more environmentally friendly, to have a better maintaining of patient files, of sterilization files. So little things like that, I think, can make a really big difference. And what as as manufacturers as well, we're able to provide for the end user or the customer. Right. You know, so it's really embracing that idea that change isn't top down anymore. It's built sideways from. And you know, when you think about top down,

19:54it's not even that hierarchical like director boss. You know what I mean? It's patient. Is that the top of that hierarchy? And then everything else is quite literally right in line with each other, the manufacturer, the department, the technician, you know, the dental provider, the services. And and I think the sooner that we embrace that, which frankly is being pushed in those 2023 updates, the better it will be. And the quicker the outcome will be. I agree. I think as you mentioned there, we all kind of have our role to play in device reprocessing as manufacturers, as educators, technicians and whatnot. So I think we all can bring to the table a little bit here and there to really just continue to drive patient safety and these guidelines and standards forward. Yeah, definitely. I couldn't agree more. And you said one of my favorite words, education. Yes. What? You knew you knew it was coming. You

20:55said, yeah, I lit up. And I was like, Oh, that's wonderful. So as far as education, what do you think we need in the next 10 years to help us reach these ideas that you just shared with us? So this is something that is so important, I think, to bring up, you know, a lot of the times in the acute space, we do have an MDRD course. Sometimes it's a requirement. Sometimes, you know, it's a refresher, whatever it may be, but that education for an actual medical device reprocessing course is available in the acute space. What we find, unfortunately, in the dental space is you've got a dental hygienist that's actually doing the dental hygienist work, but has also just taken on the role of sterilization somehow. So, you know, I'm sure they've done in-house training or whatnot, but I believe if they have like some sort of formal course for dental specifically as well,

21:57to include a lot of this information that even CSA provides now, like how to make a proper in-house PCD for table tops and things like that of that nature, I think it's super important. That education is crucial in order to make sure that these clinics know exactly what they're doing, because unfortunately, we've all been in some places where they don't, they really don't, so that's why even education from us, from our standpoint, but we're able to go in and also provide, is essential as well. Yeah, definitely, and I will be the first and not the last to say this, because I definitely got taught the way that somebody else did it, because they were there the longest, and you know, when the site surveyer says, why do you do it like that? It's, well, Pam taught me that way. That's right. That's what I was taught exactly. Right, and I really appreciate that there's this push to not just say, well, Pam taught me this way and say, because Pam went and

23:02looked at this, and we reviewed these steps, you know, that's exciting. Right, absolutely. Even things like that would be a step forward in terms of education. I agree. Yeah, I mean, and let's pay respects where it's already happening. This is a big shout out to, well, I guess you can say the behind-the-scenes silent warrior, the medical device, reprocessing technician, right? So there are in this space, they know these standards, they know these expectations, they're seeing the alignment, right? Or maybe you're in that space and you don't know. How can you suggest that they even start looking for this? Like, you don't just wake up one day and you're like, I'm going to check out the CSA standards. How would you even help them get that into their facility? Exactly. And I think that's a role that we can play if we are able to, whether it's,

24:03you know, through clinical specialists like myself or the amazing reps that we've got, you know, their feet on the ground that are able to go in there and check with these clinics, engage their comfort levels, see, you know, what they're doing. Are they aware of certain things? It's amazing. Sometimes what you can learn, Sarah, just through a walkthrough at these facilities, you know? When I've been able to go into a couple of these dental spaces, I love to be able to just go in, I ask them questions, oh, are you guys aware that there's new guidelines out there? It's to, for example, how to make your, your PCDs? Are you guys running at control? Do you, do you know what you're supposed to be doing in terms of, you know, reprocessing in general? So I think ultimately it's, it's really important for us to be able to provide some education, but maybe again, have, have designated roles in the dental space that are just specified for device reprocessing as well. I know they wear a lot of hats in these dental clinics. So

25:08that's something maybe to address in the future as well. You know, you couldn't be more rightly in because the courageousness of a curious question is that profound. And a lot of the time it's just because we don't know what question to ask. And I can really appreciate the wearing all the different buffants in a place. You know, I often make that joke, oh, I wear a lot of different buffants, but like in a medical facility, in a, but like in a dental facility, you're quite literally wearing, well, I guess all the buffants at once, right? So literally exactly that. It's really different. You know, as I said, we don't necessarily always have a designated person for device reprocessing. And, and they do, they've got many, many different hats or, or buffants as you said to, to worry about. So it's something to very well consider down the line. You know, can you have somebody specifically for, for reprocessing? Will it be mandatory? Maybe in a hygienist course to actually, you know,

26:14have a larger section on the knowledge of sterilization for, for all hygienists across the board. So interesting stuff to, to see what happens moving forward. Oh my gosh, you know what this is kind of like, like talk about history repeating itself. How much you want to bet before podcasts were obviously a thing because they didn't even have the internet this time. Someone said, hear me out, what if we centralized sterile processing or medical device reprocessing? Oh, wait, that did happen. Someone did say that. And now we have an entire profession built on it, right? So, right. You never know exactly, you know, we, we try like you, you do with these amazing podcasts to reach people and, you know, put our ideas out there and thoughts out there. But like you said, you just never know what, what happens in the future from one thought, one idea. Well, I think it's safe to say that, you know, this episode, let alone the podcast series is

27:15going to be a really big part of that. And, you know, as we come to a close on our season one of the sterilization standards unpacked, I just want to really encourage everyone to remember this, that progress isn't perfection. It's participation, right? Love that. You hit the nail on the head, you know, every clinic that documents better, trains deeper or asks one more question is moving the profession forward. This is history, not repeating itself, but rebirthing itself into a brand new space. To Leanne's point, happen in our acute care space. And it's only time that it's up for dental. Yeah. We're getting there. I can feel it. Definitely, definitely. Well, Leanne, I couldn't think of a better guest to bring us to a close this season. I want to thank you so much for coming on and really shining the light. Well, being the light at the end of the tunnel

28:20because we're just in it. And let's see where it's going to go. It's been an absolute pleasure, Sarah. Like I said, you know what? Hopefully these thoughts and our ideas will make a, we'll make a difference out there. But I'm excited to have been here and been able to have some of these frame discussions with you. Thank you so much. Yes, my pleasure. And as your host, Sarah B. Cruz, I want to thank you all again for joining us for sterilization standards on path. Remember to keep fighting dirty and solving with momentum. Take care. Thanks for listening to sterilization standards unpacked navigating Canada's dental guidelines where we connect innovation to intention and recognize the progress driving dentistry forward. Every conversation here is a reminder that progress doesn't just live in policies and products. It lives in people, the professional choices we make, the standards we uphold and the care we

29:20deliver every day. If today's discussion inspired and motivated you, share it with your team and keep the conversation going. Sterilization standards unpacked navigating Canada's dental guidelines is supported by Sylventom, creating smarter, safer ways to deliver health care and advancing the future of dentistry through innovation and education. I'm Sarah B. Cruz. Thanks for joining me and until next time, keep fighting dirty and solving with momentum.