What should be done with instruments that cannot be cleaned and sterilized between patients?

Infection control protocols prioritize patient safety by ensuring that all instruments used in procedures are either properly cleaned and sterilized or safely disposed of when they cannot be reused. Single-use instruments, by design, are meant to be used once and then discarded to avoid the risk of cross-contamination and infection transmission. Therefore, if an instrument is labeled as single-use and cannot be cleaned and sterilized effectively between patients, it should be disposed of immediately after use to maintain a safe clinical environment.

Choosing to discard single-use instruments adheres to best practices in infection prevention, ensuring that no potentially contaminated instruments are reused, thus safeguarding the health and well-being of future patients.