Stethoscope cleaning

[CanuckStudent]

Just wondering how you guys keep your 'scopes clean. For example, do you just use the antimicrobial wipes? Can you even use alcohol on the bell/diaphragm of a stethoscope?

If you were going to examine a patient, would you wash your hands/use a wipe on your hands, wipe the scope (bell/diaphragm) with a clean wipe, and then warm it with your now sanitised hand?

Is this how you guys normally do it?

Note: I'm talking about general infection control, not in areas where disposable nursing scopes would be used, etc.

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

your method sound great but I bet very few stethoscopes are ever sanitized. Sad but true.

[JoJo_Ga_Girl]

I clean my scope before and after each patient. I do this after washing my hands.

[miwachiru123]

Not sure what kind of wipes your institution uses... But I used Cavi Wipes on my Littmann Stethoscope, and it made the tubing feel all sticky and disgusting after it dried. I washed it off with water and its fine, but just a heads up!

[cardiac.cure03]

I just use alcohol wipes

[magma1]

I use the hand sanitizer dispenser outside each patient's room before going in & make sure to rub it in all the way up the stethoscope tubing as well as on the diaphragm. I haven't had any problems with the sanitizer interacting with the stethoscope's components.

[vickyp]

I use an alcohol pad most of those wipes make the tube sticky. Maybe that would be a good thing to invent cleaning wipes specifically for stethoscopes.... (note to self)

[SouthernComfort31]

I use the alcohol wipes.

One thing I make sure to do is clean it right before I use it on a patient, and clean it in front of them. Patients take notice of our infection control practices; they may or may not have the guts to say something, but they notice. Mine always look at me funny when I clean it in front of them, which makes me think they notice when others don't clean their scopes!

[tabster224]

I work home health, and wash my hands when I enter the home, then use antibacterial foam (which I buy on my own because I don't like the stuff the company supplies) any time I change gloves, before reaching into my bag ect.... I then clean my equipment with lysol wipes (which I also buy myself) and then I wipe down my equipment again after use. I have had people tell me that I am the only one that does this. I also recently had someone go ballistic on me because I cleaned everything, because they thought that I thought they had "something". I tried to explain I do this with every use of my equipment but of course they didn't believe it. Anyway, I wipe my stuff down before and after every use.

[BabyLady, BSN, RN]

Not sure what kind of wipes your institution uses... But I used Cavi Wipes on my Littmann Stethoscope, and it made the tubing feel all sticky and disgusting after it dried. I washed it off with water and its fine, but just a heads up!

The Cavi wipes also have a degreaser built in.

This breaks down the plastic protective coating on the stethescope...that is why it was sticky.

I just use alcohol.

[thursmo]

they make disposable diaphram covers, but just to make things easy some people put a glove over it for all pts

[Anxious Patient]

As a patient who doesn't have the guts to request or remind nurses and docs about good hygiene, I thank you. I have one doc who just lets the water run over his fingertips a couple of seconds and then wipes them on his coat to dry.