Lancet storage

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We had a CAP inspection yesterday. Our units put the lancets in the accessory boxes, and in some cases have their own little baskets they use to hold supplies. The inspecter said that joint commission is starting to really crack down on it because the lancets are not being stored in the box they came in with all the lot information on it. 

Are there lancets that we could switch to that have this printed on each lancet? If not, how have others addressed this issue? It would be nice to just tell them to keep them in box, but realistically that will not happen. 

15 Replies

Hi Jennifer,
We don’t allow storage now of  lancets in totes, for the reason TJC told you about.
Our testing stations keep the (original) boxes on the countertop where the downloaders/bases are since operators have to pull meters off bases.
The operators can store strips and controls in totes, pickup number of lancets they will need and the meter- into tote.
After testing completed, no lancets are to remain in totes.

We did not get cited when some test sites had lancets stored in totes but to do that, the site had to tap a message in tote with lot#and exp date- not sure if that is a viable option these days.


Hi Jennifer,
We were also having difficulty getting staff to either keep the lancets in the boxes or keep them in a bag and include attach a sticker or slip of paper with the lot and expiration.  We have not been cited but we recently switched from the BD lancets to a MediChoice lancet that prints the exp on the individual lancets to avoid any problems in the future.  The MediChoice lancets are a little smaller than the BD but they have an expiration date printed on the end. 
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Amanda- good to know! Thanks for posting. I will tell my nursing folks!

We were having major issues with this as well. Our solution was to turn responsibility of all collection supplies over to nursing on the floors. We no longer supply lancets to them for point of care collection. Lancets for the floors are now maintained and stocked by Central Supply only. When we are asked about anything related to collection; we tell the inspectors that we provide education on how to properly use the point of care devices, not on how to perform/collect the finger-sticks.  I'm glad to know about the Medichoice lancets in case we ever have to go back...

Same thing at my institution. We are in the process of vetting options with lots printed on them. I'm happy to send you the options we found. There are several out there for regular lancets, but not too many for heel sticks.

Hi Amanda, 
I would appreciate it if you would email me your list of lancets that have printed expiration dates on them.  My email is rl107@cumc.columbia.edu

Thanks,
Ramona

HI Jennifer, I've observed units placing a few lancets in small clear bags with a label on the bag that indicated the lot number and expiration date from the original box.

Thank you for sharing Jennifer!  Could you please send me the MediChoice item/catalog number?  I'd like to share this with our JC preparedness group.

If you could send me your list Alisha, that would be great! thank you!

jentoncray@mhsystem.org

Amanda and Alisha,

We would appreciate the information you have regarding lancets which are individually dated (MediChoice and others).  We are currently preparing for our TJC inspection which is coming up soon.  I will forward the information to the person heading our preparation.  Our shared mailbox is mercypoct@mercyoneiowa.org.

Thanks,

Theresa and Sherri

We use NOVAplus lancets and they have the lot number stamped on them.  I would rather have an expiration date but it's better than nothing.
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What about "unsecured sharps"? Or sharps in an "unsecured area"?
Is TJC bringing this up with lancet storage at all?

Thank you for this topic. Glad to have a chance to address it before our next survey...

Alisha- I also would like some of the information regarding stamped lancets- 
We are a State facility- and everything moves at a slower pace- but I can get the preliminaries started.
Thank you!

Interested in list as well. fflora08@gmail.com

Sorry for my delay. I attached the document with the lancets we've found that could help with the tracking issue.
Lancets with Lot Tracking.docx

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Jennifer Toncray
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