A nationwide survey on the effectiveness of training on endoscope reprocessing within the national cancer screening program in Korea

Background: The National Cancer Center has provided nationwide endoscope reprocessing training to hospitals annually performing national gastric and colorectal cancer screening in Korea since 2012. This study aimed to evaluate the adherence of past participants of endoscope reprocessing training to the reprocessing guidelines and their satisfaction with the current training. Methods: Training on endoscope reprocessing was implemented 18 times across the country, from June 2019 to November 2019. Immediately after the training, participants filled a paper questionnaire related to reprocessing practices and satisfaction with the current training anonymously. Results: A total of 1,132 participants trained responded to the survey (response rate, 95.4%). Of the study participants, 45.7% participated in the past endoscope reprocessing training, and 94.6% of them answered that they have adhered to the endoscope reprocessing guidelines. Experience of participation in endoscope reprocessing training was significantly associated with practical adherence to endoscope reprocessing guidelines (aOR, 6.55; 95% CI, 3.93 to 10.91). And, 91% of study participants were satisfied with the current endoscope reprocessing training. Conclusions: The current training on endoscope reprocessing provided at the national level could help ensure adherence to reprocessing guidelines, resulting in obtaining quality control for endoscopy. However, about half of practitioners currently working in endoscopy units had not received sufficient reprocessing training, and thus more training is needed for them. (c) 2021 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Automated summary

The study showed that healthcare professionals who have participated in endoscope reprocessing training are more likely to adhere to the guidelines, and they are generally satisfied with the current training. National training programs can help ensure quality control for endoscopy, but further training is needed for half of the practitioners currently working in endoscopy units.