Whether you’re at home, work or at play, standards are virtually as ever-present and essential as the air we breathe. Design standards govern how the toaster and coffee machine you use in the morning are wired, how the bridge you cross while getting to work is built, and how your workplace is designed to protect your well-being physically and psychologically.
In Canada, the CSA Group is the leading organization dedicated to standards research, development, education and advocacy. The Group also provides testing, inspection and certification services that enable manufacturers to show that their products comply with national safety, environmental and performance standards.
Standards touch the very foundation of healthcare, creating a manageable framework that addresses everything from facility design and digital infrastructure to infection control and equipment safety. And our healthcare system is better for it, providing a more solid and dependable safety net for patients and staff members.
Acart’s President, Katie Flynn, is currently on the committee involved in the CSA Z314:23 standards for Canadian medical device reprocessing in all health care settings. These standards are critical to the medical device reprocessing department in establishing a quality management system (QMS) at each phase of the workflow. Processing, handling and storage equipment has an instrumental role in these standards, which is where Katie can offer her priceless expertise and insights into the standards’ ongoing evolution and development.
Before joining the Z314:23 committee, Katie was the Vice-Chair of the CSA Z314:15 Warehousing, storage, and transportation of clean and sterile medical devices committee; these standards, along with many others, have been blended into the main Z314.23.
“We are in the process of updating the 2023 Z314:15 document,” Katie says. “It is a huge task, especially with the document being approximately 475 pages. The committee is very diligent and highly knowledgeable, with some members dedicating many hours to ensure the content is updated, organized and relevant.”
As Katie continues her collaboration with the Z314:23 committee, we will be sharing ongoing insights into the standards development and offering medical device reprocessing advice that our clients can apply to their workplaces.
As healthcare workflow and equipment storage experts, Acart understands the complexities of facility design and standards compliance like no other. Contact us now to consult with us on the ways you can reimagine your space.