[Immediate decontamination. Comparative ergonomic study].

Abstract

The standard procedures of decontamination between two patients were studied. As standards were chosen the OSHA's standards (Organization for Safety and Health Administration). The study was conducted by means of a "time and motion" analysis. The most important conclusions reached were: 1) it's impossible to complete the whole sequence in less than 10-15 minutes; 2) within this period one assistant didn't have any time to help the doctor at the chair; 3) consequently the doctor has to work alone for 10-15 minutes, unless a second assistant had been employed; 4) consequently, when we try to improve the decontamination, we need another assistant to make the work smoother, with a rise of the costs; 5) the systematic usage of the so called "barriers" is extremely time-wasting; 6) the only way to reduce the decontamination-time is the use of automatic devices, as the "Autosteril".