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The new Lisa sterilizer in use in the practice
Greater flexibility and cost-efficiency in the hygiene process
Excellent hygiene is a basic requirement for a successful dental practice. It is based on standardized processes for preparation of instruments that are as simple as possible and can be automated. The new W&H Lisa sterilizer is designed not only for simple and flexible integration into existing hygiene processes but also with state-of-the-art functions that can be easily adapted to the specific requirements of users, thereby offering optimal support for everyday work in the dental practice.
Swiss dentist Dr. med. dent. Thomas Hirt runs a practice with 3 dentists, 5 dental hygienists and 3 prophylaxis assistants and therefore sees around 50 patients a day. To give this number of patients the best possible treatment, reliable preparation processes are essential and are currently provided by three W&H sterilizers and one other sterilizer. Two well-used Lisa 500 sterilizers in the sterilization room in Uster have been joined by an example of the new generation of Lisa. The practice can now not only ensure the required flexibility and cost-effectiveness in the hygiene process but it can also implement the highest possible safety standards. In an interview Dr Hirt discussed the use of the new Lisa in his practice in Uster, Switzerland:
Dr Hirt, what is the role of the new Lisa in the hygiene process in your practice?
Dr. Hirt: It has a central position because it is ideal for today’s hygiene requirements. The W&H sterilizer also simplifies the process of documenting all parts of the process, ensuring a high degree of safety.
A glance around your dental practice shows that you currently have three W&H Lisa sterilizers. To what extent do they support efficiency and save time in your dental practice?
Dr. Hirt: Because we operate a large dental practice with a large number of patients, we were faced with the decision of using either one large sterilizer or several small autoclaves. It soon became clear to me that several small sterilizers would provide greater flexibility and better management of the devices. While a large sterilizer will always have idle periods until enough material for sterilization has accumulated, we profit from continuous flexible operation of several smaller devices.
Our practice team fills the small sterilizers as they become available and as soon as one is full it is started. Then the next is filled, started again, and so on ... Instruments and sets coming out of the disinfection zone no longer require interim storage but are immediately loaded into an available sterilizer.
What do you think of the reliability of your new Lisa sterilizer?
Dr. Hirt: We have been using the new sterilizer for 12 months and it has been absolutely fault-free. However, we could continue to work even if it were to fail. We currently have four sterilizers: three Lisa autoclaves and another from a different manufacturer. If one sterilizer fails, we have lost 25% of our capacity and we can still continue working. With one large sterilizer we would immediately lose 100% of our capacity. Our target is to install five Lisa sterilizers in the sterilization room.
The new Lisa offers not only adjusted cycle times and thus increased instrument service life but also optimized power consumption. What do you yourself think of those advantages?
Dr. Hirt: Our practice team is very satisfied with the cycle times of the new Lisa. We use only prion programs for sterilization. This is quite sufficient for our daily practice routine. In addition, the helix test in the morning is faster than before.
The duration of the heat effect is reduced by adjusting the drying time for the load. This has a positive effect on the service life of the instruments and it also reduces power consumption and the heat dissipated by the sterilizers. Low energy consumption is a clear advantage for us. Our practice is very conscious of our energy consumption.
Complete documentation of sterilization cycles through to traceability down to the individual patient is a legal requirement in many countries. How does the new Lisa support you with the documentation?
Dr. Hirt: The new Lisa offers perfect documentation and traceability of cycles, which means that we profit from a comprehensive quality management system. We are currently still using the LisaSafe label printer, which is a quick and easy tool for linking the sterilization cycle with patient records. In future we intend to maintain the daily journal fully electronically and take full advantage of all the options of the new Lisa – such as saving cycle reports with the USB connection and setting a wide range of customised user options. We expect that this will give us even greater efficiency and reliability for the legally required traceability.
The new W&H device has a system for real-time remote monitoring by WiFi. Do you use this in your practice?
Dr. Hirt: Every day two dental assistants (in rotation) are responsible for instrument preparation in our practice. They provide our clinicians with all the instruments they need during dental treatment. Clinicians and assistants use an intercom system to notify them what instruments are needed. The assistants deliver them to the treatment room. This means that clinicians and other dental personnel do not need to leave the room and gaps in the hygiene process are eliminated. We work very well with this system.
Because we have two persons permanently assigned to instrument preparation, we do not currently use the real-time WiFi monitoring system. In my opinion this function is especially suited to smaller dental practices with fewer people. There it would certainly be a great support for the hygiene work processes.
What do you think of the design of the new Lisa?
Dr. Hirt: Very good. Of course, design is very important to us, as you can see also elsewhere in our practice. It starts with the reception area with selected furniture and extends to the modern equipment in our treatment rooms. However, for me the design is not the complete reason for purchase. I always look for the device that offers the best functions and economy, and if it also looks good, so much the better.
What I particularly like about the new Lisa sterilizer is its compact design. The sterilizers can be installed relatively close to one another and thus are economical with space.
Your personal evaluation of the Lisa?
Dr. Hirt: The new Lisa is a high-quality device with the most modern functions and the support from W&H is also outstanding. We are more than satisfied, therefore we aim to extend our capacities with more W&H devices.
Thank you very much for talking to us!
* Photos: Dr. Thomas Hirt
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