Use and Disposal of Filled Syringes
- Medication drawn into syringes will be obtained only from sources labeled with the name, concentration, expiration date, and the date originally opened, in the case of multi-dose units. All syringes into which drugs are drawn (prefilled syringes) will be labeled with the name of the drug it contains and the concentration of the drug, if diluted. Propofol will be labeled with the time. These syringes may only be filled by a licensed anesthesiologist or pharmacist or under the direction of a licensed anesthesiologist or pharmacist. All such syringes will be kept on the person of the anesthesiologist, the top of the anesthesia machine or cart or in the drug drawer of the cart. Used syringes will be disposed of at the end of the case for which they were prepared by the anesthesia technician, and all prefilled syringes will be disposed of at the end of the day by the anesthesia technician. Only unused filled syringes will be placed in the anesthesia cart’s drug drawer. All other filled syringes will be considered to have been used, including any on or in the anesthesia cart at the beginning of the day. Carts will be serviced by an anesthesia technician between each case and at the end of the day. All carts will be locked when not in active service in the operating room.
- Syringes filled by pharmacy services will be clearly labeled with the names, concentration, and expiration date of the drug they contain. These syringes will be treated in the same manner as syringes filled by anesthesiologists.
- Multi-dose sources will be disposed of by the expiration date printed on the source label, and after the case in which they have been contaminated (by being used to reload syringes that have been used to deliver drugs to any fluid path connected directly to a patient). Contaminated multi-dose sources will not be placed in the drug drawer of the anesthesia cart. All contaminated multi-dose drug sources will be disposed of at the end of the case. All multi-dose sources will be labeled by the anesthesia technician when the cart is serviced.
