IDSc Preview 2025
a circular economy in the health sector are vast and increasingly well-understood, but are rarely put into practice and are difficult to scale. Unlocking these benefits across the UK health sector will bring many opportunities for innovation and growth, while improving patient care and value for money and supporting the transition to a net zero NHS.
A National Decontamination Strategy IDSc contributed to the development of a roadmap to deliver this vision. By 2045, the plan is that the UK will have transitioned away from all avoidable single-use MedTech products towards a functioning circular system, safely transforming the sector to deliver enhanced resilience, increased economic growth, better value for patients and the NHS, and minimised environmental impacts.
Decontamination departments will have
a pivotal role in the delivery of this plan, as it will require a move away from single-use to reusable, wherever possible. However, the Department of Health and Social Care has recognised that, in order to deliver this plan, there will need to be increased decontamination capacity. Due to years of underinvestment and the state of surgical waiting lists (following COVID-19), sterile services do not have the staff or resources to meet the increase in demand that the strategy will require, so funding is expected to be made available to underpin the circular approach. “The plan will mean considerable changes
in the way we work. The UK is looking to move back to reusable instruments, which is basically moving back to the 1980s and 90s. This will include things like suture packs, maternity dressing packs, and anything where disposable instruments are used. This project will be part of a national decontamination strategy,” said Trevor Garcia. “We have successfully brought the national decontamination strategy forward by three years, due to the urgent need,” he added. “Our surveys have shown that most sterile services departments are working at 80-90% capacity, which means that they would not be able to cope with the increased workload. “The IDSc is working with the Department
of Health and Social Care to identify the needs and requirements. For example, there will need to be an education programme for clinical teams, as the move to reusables will mean new approaches and systems. Many younger clinicians will be used to simply throwing away devices,” Trevor Garcia commented. He added that the need for increased capacity could also drive innovation in
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The UK is looking to move back to reusable instruments, which is basically moving back to the 1980s and 90s. This will include things like suture packs, maternity dressing packs, and anything where disposable instruments are used.
automation and the use of robots in sterile services: “Robotic equipment may not be suitable for packing very complex sets, but it may be used to start doing the simple packs. Therefore, we can expect to see the development and trialling of new technology in the coming years,” he asserted.
A new Chairman for IDSc 2026 promises to be a busy year for the new
Chair of IDSc, Dean Burand, with of lots of meetings taking place to drive the National Decontamination Strategy forward. He will be tasked with continuing to build cooperative partnerships with professional organisations and bodies, overseeing changes to the board, and finalising the BSc apprenticeship Level 6. (The first intake for the BSc is planned for September 2026.) Dean Burand is currently the Director of
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