WO2002045874A1

WO2002045874A1 - Recycling system for disposable medical device

Info

Publication number: WO2002045874A1
Application number: PCT/JP2001/007790
Authority: WO
Inventors: Keijiro Masui; Keiichiro Yoshida
Original assignee: Inprest., Co. Ltd.; National Institute Of Advanced Industrial Science And Technology
Priority date: 2000-12-05
Filing date: 2001-09-07
Publication date: 2002-06-13
Also published as: CN1398207A; JP2002166261A

Abstract

A disposable medical device recycling system for not disposing of but recycling a disposable medical device which is constructed by combining metallic functional parts and plastic parts, after the medical device is employed in a medical organ. The recycling system comprises: a manufacture system (21) for manufacturing the disposable medical device through steps of assembling the metallic functional parts and the plastic parts; a feed system (22) for feeding the disposable medical device to the medical organ; a recovery system (23) for recovering the employed disposable medical device to a maker after sterilizing it; and a parts regenerating system (24) for regenerating the metallic functional parts through a step of disassembling the employed disposable medical device recovered and steps of selecting and inspecting the metallic functional parts within a useful life. The target of the recycling system is the disposable medical device of the structure, in which the metallic functional parts and the plastic parts can be disassembled.

Description

Description Disposable medical device recycling system Technical field

The present invention relates to a disposable medical device configured by combining a metal functional component and other components including a plastic component (hereinafter, referred to as a plastic component, etc.), and particularly to manufacturing the disposable curry medical device. The present invention relates to a recycling system for disposable medical devices, including manufacturers that use them and multiple medical institutions that use them. Background art

Disposable medical devices are disposed of as medical waste after being used for medical treatment. If a disposable medical device used once is used for other patients, it may cause infection. It seems that disposable medical devices used once can be reused if they are sterilized. In the medical field, a sterilization method using a disinfectant or a disinfecting gas or a sterilization method using high-pressure steam such as an autoclave is generally used. However, it is extremely difficult to completely sterilize disposable medical devices after use with these sterilization methods.

In particular, with regard to conventional disposable medical devices that are constructed so that metal functional parts and plastic parts are bonded and welded so that they cannot be disassembled, sterilization methods using disinfecting chemicals and gas, autoclave, etc. The sterilization method using high-pressure steam cannot completely sterilize the disposable medical device after use. Moreover, when these sterilization methods are applied, the plastic parts are deformed, so that the disposable medical device composed of the functional parts made of metal and the plastic parts does not perform its original function. After all, conventional disposable medical devices composed of metal functional parts and plastic parts are disposed of as medical waste after use. As a result, the amount of medical waste is increasing year by year, and has become a social problem. However, effective methods to solve this are still available. Absent.

The flow of production, sales, use, and disposal of this conventional disposable medical device is illustrated in Fig. 11. As shown in Fig. 11, disposable medical devices with a structure in which metal functional parts and plastic parts are difficult to disassemble are shown. Manufacturing system 3 1, a supply system 3 2 for selling the disposable medical device directly to a medical institution from a manufacturer or via a sales company, and a used disposable medical device for medical waste This is a non-recycling system consisting of a disposal system where the processing company collects from medical institutions and disposes of it.

In other words, as shown in Fig. 12, a conventional disposable medical device composed of functional metal parts and plastic parts is sold from a manufacturer 25 to a medical institution 26, and After being used at the institution 26, it was collected by a medical waste disposal company 27, incinerated in an incinerator, or disposed of at a landfill site for disposal. Therefore, conventionally, as shown in Figure 10, the medical institution 26 pays the purchase price to the manufacturer 25 when purchasing disposable medical devices, and furthermore, a disposal fee to the medical waste disposal company 27 when disposing. The problem is that you have to pay the double cost of paying.

Even if they are disposed of as medical waste, blood, body fluids and biological fragments containing harmful pathogens may be attached to the disposable medical device after use, so those who are involved in collection and disposal work There are various problems related to ensuring the safety of buildings and preventing illegal dumping. Several proposals have been made to solve these problems.

For example, a disposable medical device disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 7-95982 discloses a method in which at least a part of a portion that does not directly contact a mucous membrane in a body cavity is made of a material containing a hydrophilic polymer. By disposing disposable medical devices, they cannot be reused.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei 8-574742 discloses a disposable medical device used in a special collection container that can be heated at a temperature lower than the ignition point of the plastic material and higher than the melting point of the plastic material. , High temperature sterilization, and plastic material A method for treating waste is disclosed. According to this treatment method, disposable medical devices after use can be sterilized, and plastic materials and non-plastic materials (rubber and metal materials) can be separated and collected. Therefore, it is possible to ensure the safety of those involved in collection and disposal work, and to reuse them as materials.

Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-99019 discloses that a plastic disposable medical device as a medical waste to which a biochemical substance having an amino group is attached, and an epoxy compound having an oxylan ring are mixed. Thus, there is disclosed a method for treating medical waste in which a ring-opening reaction of the oxysilane ring of the epoxy compound is caused by the amino group, and a solidified product of the medical waste and the epoxy cured resin is generated as a final product. ing. According to this treatment method, the disposable medical device after use can be sterilized, and the plastic material can be collected. Therefore, it is possible to ensure the safety of those involved in the collection and disposal work, and to reuse the material.

By the way, some disposable medical devices are expensive, such as endoscopic surgical devices that cost tens of thousands of yen. Such an expensive disposable medical device is a disposable medical device configured by combining a metal functional component and a plastic component, etc., and the functional component of the metal occupies most of the component cost. . The conventional medical device disposal method described above has a problem that it is extremely uneconomical for the medical industry because expensive metal functional components of disposable medical devices can be reused only for simple metallic materials. is there.

The first problem to be solved by the present invention is that a disposable pull medical device composed of a combination of a metal functional component and a plastic component, etc. is used at a medical institution, and is not discarded as it is, but is recycled. It is to be reused through the process.

A second problem to be solved by the present invention is that after a disposable medical device composed of a combination of a functional component made of metal and a plastic component is used in a medical institution, the disposable medical device goes through a regeneration process, and This is to reuse functional components as recycled products. Disclosure of the invention

Recycling of the disposable medical device of the first invention of the present application that solves the above problems Manufacturing system that manufactures disposable medical devices through the process of assembling metal functional parts and plastic parts, supply system that supplies disposable medical devices to medical institutions, and manufacturers that sterilize used disposable medical devices And a component recycling system that recycles the functional metal components through the disassembly process of the collected disposable medical devices collected, the sorting process of metal functional components within the service life, and the inspection process. did.

The disposable medical device recycling system according to the second aspect of the present invention, which solves the above-mentioned problems, includes a disposable medical device manufacturing system for manufacturing disposable medical devices through a process of assembling metal functional components and plastic components, and a disposable medical device for medical institutions. Supply system that supplies disposable medical devices, disassembling used disposable medical devices, and sterilizing only metal functional parts and collecting them to the manufacturer, and sorting collected metallic functional parts within the number of service life It consists of a parts recycling system that recycles metallic functional parts through a sorting process and an inspection process.

In the recycling system for disposable medical devices according to the present invention, the object of recycling is a disposable medical device having a structure in which a metal functional component and a plastic component can be disassembled. More specifically, the disposable medical device is a disposable endoscopic surgical instrument having a structure in which a metal functional component and a plastic component can be disassembled.

The disposable medical device manufacturing system described above is a manufacturing system for manufacturing disposable medical devices through an assembling process of metal functional components and plastic components. In this manufacturing system, recycled metal functional components supplied from the component recycling system are used in addition to new metal functional components.

The disposable medical device supply system described above is a system in which a manufacturer sells or lends disposable medical devices to a medical institution, which is the user, and supplies the disposable medical devices. The disposable medical device can be supplied to a medical institution in a separate case provided with a product number and identification means for identifying whether or not the medical device has been used. The supply of disposable medical equipment includes not only direct supply from a manufacturer to a medical institution, but also supply through a sales company or leasing company. The above service life was determined experimentally by repeating the cycle of simulated use, disassembly, inspection, and assembly of the disposable medical device.

Sterilization treatment in the above recovery system is typically radiation sterilization treatment. In the above-mentioned component recycling system, whether or not the functional component is a metal functional component within the service life is determined based on the usage history data of the metallic functional component included in the collected used disposable medical device.

The supply of disposable medical devices to medical institutions in the supply system described above and the collection of used disposable medical devices or metal functional parts from medical institutions in the collection system are performed by dedicated storage with identification numbers. It can be done with tools. This special storage device is a special case or a special bag, and it is preferable that a chemical indicator is attached thereto.

In the disposable medical device recycling system according to the present invention, the product number of the disposable medical device, the part number of the component constituting the disposable medical device, the use history data of the metallic functional component to be recycled, and the exclusive storage Data such as identification numbers given to tools should be managed by the data management system provided in the manufacturer. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a recycling system for disposable medical devices according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a disposable medical device recycling system according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a disposable medical device recycling system according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of an experiment in the first stage of the method for determining the number of times of use of a metal functional component. FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the second stage experiment of the method of judging the number of times of use of a metallic functional component. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a disassembled state of a handle portion of an embodiment of the disposable medical device in which a metal functional component and a plastic component can be disassembled. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the positions of manufacturers and medical institutions in the disposable medical device recycling system according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 shows a manufacturer and a medical institution in a disposable medical device recycling system according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a relationship between a maker and a medical institution in the disposable medical device recycling system according to the present invention. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing the relationship between a manufacturer of disposable care medical equipment and a medical institution in a conventional non-recycling system. Fig. 11 shows a conventional non-recycling system for disposable medical devices from manufacturing to use and disposal. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the positions of manufacturers and medical institutions in a conventional non-recyclable system for disposable medical devices. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The disposable medical device recycling system according to the present invention has been invented based on the following three facts regarding an endoscopic surgical instrument configured by combining a metal functional component and a plastic component. Therefore, these three facts will be described before describing the embodiments of the invention.

(Disposable endoscopic surgical instrument with disassembly structure)

The first fact is that one of the applicants of the present application is a disposable endoscopic surgical instrument configured by combining a metal functional component and a plastic component, etc. The inventor invented a disposable endoscope surgical instrument having a structure that can be easily disassembled, and filed an application as Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-193,207.

That is, the disposable endoscopic surgical instrument is a forceps, and one embodiment thereof is as shown in FIG. 6 which is a perspective view of a state where the handle portion 2 is disassembled.

In FIG. 6, the handle portion 2 is configured by combining a right portion 2B including most of the finger ring 2A and a left portion 2C from the left and right. These two parts 2 B and 2 C are press-fitted with small diameter parts on both sides of dowel pins 1 and 2 into dowel holes 10 and 11 formed at two opposing positions on the inside. So that they can be assembled together. The dowel holes 10 and 11 and the dowel pins 12 and 13 constitute a connecting portion.

On the outer peripheral surface of the small-diameter portion near both sides of these dowel pins 12 and 13, a fine cell is formed to frictionally engage the inner peripheral surfaces of the dowel holes 10 and 11. The two parts 2 B and 2 C constituting the handle part 2 are firmly connected to each other so as not to be separated in a normal use state.

The operation lever 6 is rotatably supported around a shaft 14 protruding inside the right portion 2B of the handle portion 2 and penetrates slidably through the shaft portion 3. The opening / closing finger 15 is rotatably connected to a connecting pipe 16 at the rear end.

The front end of the finger opening / closing rod 15 is linked to the pair of fingers 4 so that the rotation of the operation lever 6 is converted to the opening / closing movement of the pair of fingers 4.

The vicinity of the rear end of the finger opening / closing rod 15 is electrically connected to the terminal 9 via the conductive plate 17, and electricity is supplied through the finger opening / closing rod 15 from the terminal 9 to the pair of fingers 4. It is like that.

On the other hand, a saw tooth tooth T is formed on the operation reporter 6, and the finger tooth 4 is opened by engaging the tooth T with the claw t formed on the ratchet 18. The rotation of the operation lever 6 in the direction is locked.

The ratchet 18 is rotatably supported on a shaft 19 protruding inside the right side portion 2B of the handle portion 2 similarly to the shaft 14, and the pawl t is always held by the ratchet panel 20. It is urged to engage the ratchet teeth T.

Further, the ratchet 18 is held in a state where the pawl t is separated from the ratchet tooth T by sliding the ratchet release switch 7 forward, and the finger 4 can be opened in this state. ing.

The handle part 2 includes metal parts made of metal materials such as terminals 9 ゃ ratchet spring 20, conductive plate 17, finger opening and closing port 15, etc., and some of these parts, namely The metal functional parts are separated from the handle 2 by disassembling the used forceps 1.

When disassembling the handle portion 2 of the used forceps 1, forcibly separate the right portion 2 B and the left portion 2 C connected by the dowel pins 12 and 13. In order to facilitate this work, in the forceps 1 of the present embodiment, a minus dry line is attached to the front and rear sides of the outer periphery of the joint surface of the right part 2B and the left part 2C constituting the handle part 2 respectively. A groove into which a first-class tool can be inserted is formed.

Each of these grooves is formed to have a half width opposite to the same portion of the outer peripheral portion of the joint surface 2B, 2C on both sides of the handle portion 2, and each of these portions 2B, 2C is one. It is formed so that the blade edge of a flat-blade screwdriver or the like becomes a groove with a width that can be inserted when it is adjusted.

In this embodiment, the joints of the two parts 2 B and 2 C of the handle part 2 are arranged at two places near the upper part of the finger hook 2 A of the handle part 2 and near the rear upper end of the handle part 2. Since the dowel pins 12 and 13 are used, the two grooves 21 and 22 are provided on the outer periphery of the handle portion 2 at positions close to the dowel pins 12 and 13.

When disassembling the handle part 2, first insert a tool such as a minus screwdriver into one of these grooves and pry it to create a slight gap between the joint surfaces of the two parts 2B and 2C. Now, replace the tool in the other groove and pry in the same way, and work so that the gap between the two parts 2B and 2C increases almost uniformly, so that these dowel pins 1 2 and 1 3 Each dowel hole 10, 11 comes out, and the handle part 2 can be easily disassembled into two parts 2 B, 2 C.

In short, the disposable curry medical device shown in FIG. 6 is a disposable endoscopic surgical instrument in which the handle portion is composed of a plurality of portions, and these portions are connected to each other by a connecting portion and integrally assembled. A tool can be inserted into at least a part of the outer circumference of the joint surface of the parts connected to each other at the joint part of the handle part to push apart these joint surfaces to forcibly separate the joint part This is a disposable endoscopic surgical instrument characterized by forming a groove.

(Confirmation of service life of functional metal parts)

The second fact is that the disposable endoscopic surgical instrument according to the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-1993 207 was manufactured and, through scientific experiments, its metallic functional parts could be used several times. The inventor of the present application has confirmed that it can withstand, that is, the durability is several times.

The above disposable endoscopic surgical instruments consist of a handle, a tip, a shaft, a rod, a link part, a dial, a lever, an electrode rod, a ratchet, a ratchet part, And a plurality of parts of the insulating bar. Metal parts are tip parts, shafts, rods, link parts, and electrode rods, but metal functional parts to be recycled are the tip parts and electrode rods.

This second fact, that is, the fact that the metallic functional parts of an endoscopic surgical instrument can withstand several uses if completely sterilized, is illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5. It was confirmed by an experimental method using a chart.

Fig. 4 shows the experimental method in the first stage. At this stage, it was determined how many times each reusable part can be used. That is, the product was simulated using commercially available meat or the like (201), and the product was contaminated with a dye imitating blood (202). Next, a rough cleaning step was performed (203), and the product was disassembled (204). Subsequently, the disassembled parts are sorted out (205), and the metallic functional parts to be reused are cleaned using an ultrasonic cleaner (206), dried (207), and reused parts are reused. The metal functional parts were inspected (2008).

Inspection contents of metal functional parts that are reused parts include shape inspection using a stereomicroscope to check for wear, dimension inspection using an electronic caliper, and clean inspection using a cleanliness determination kit. It is. The kit for determining the degree of washing is a commercially available kit for determining the stain by, for example, a change in color according to the amount of protein.

Only the metal functional parts that are reused parts that passed each of these tests were assembled together with unused parts to complete the product (209), and after the product operation test (210), the product was simulated again. It returned to the step (201) which is commonly used. For the operation test of the product, a grip force test and a durability test were also performed. Parts other than metal functional parts that are reused parts and metal functional parts that did not pass the inspection were either reused as materials (2 1 1) or discarded.

The cycle from step 201 to 210 described above was repeated, and an experiment was conducted under different conditions to determine how many uses each test passed. The different conditions refer to men, women, hard meat pieces, soft meat pieces, etc., and the average value of each is obtained, and it is recognized that the number of times of use is several times. As a matter of course, the above inspections and test results were based on the inspections and test results of products assembled using only unused parts. In order to confirm the number of service life, the second stage experiment shown in Fig. 5 was performed. In the second stage, the products used were used under the same conditions as the final products to be supplied to the hospital, that is, sterilized products. This product was simulated using commercially available meat and the like as in the first stage (301). After use, blood was allowed to adhere to the product (302) and sterilized by radiation (303). After performing the rough washing (304) and drying (305) of the sterilized product, the product was disassembled (306). Subsequently, the disassembled parts are sorted out (307), and the metallic functional parts to be reused parts are cleaned using an ultrasonic cleaner (308), dried (309), and reused parts are reused. The metal functional component was inspected (310). The second stage inspection is an inspection of the material status of the functional parts made of metal that will be reused parts that have been radiation sterilized, in addition to the inspection items of the first stage described above. In the material inspection, a comparison between test values before and after radiation sterilization was performed using a tensile compression tester and a hardness tester. In this comparative experiment, data was calculated for each number of sterilizations, such as one circulation and two circulations.

In this way, the scientific experiments in the first and second stages confirmed that the functional parts to be recycled were used several times.

(Cost of metal functional parts as recycled products)

The third fact is that the metal functional parts of the above-mentioned disposable endoscopic surgical instrument are made durable 5 times, and the disposable endoscopic surgical instrument is recycled in consideration of the collection cost and the component renewal cost. As a result of calculating the cost of the metallic functional component as a product, the inventor of the present application has confirmed that the recycled product is approximately 60 to 70% of a new product. The cost of recovery or the cost of component recycling includes the cost of radiation sterilization, and the cost of component recycling includes disassembly costs, cleaning and drying costs, and inspection costs. The inspection cost was the same as the cost of receiving a new product. This is because the inspection to determine whether a product can be used as a recycled product is as strict as the inspection when a new part is received from a parts supplier.

(First invention)

Based on the above three facts, the disposable medical device recycling system according to the first invention of the present application, as shown in Fig. 1, has a disposable medical device having a structure in which functional metal parts and plastic parts can be disassembled. Manufacturing manufacturing systems System 21 1, Supply system for selling or lending the disposable medical device and supplying it to medical institutions 2 2, Collection system 23 for sterilizing used disposable medical devices and collecting them at the manufacturer, and collected The disposable medical device is disassembled, metal functional components within the service life are sorted out, and a component recycling system 24 that inspects and regenerates them is connected in order to form a cycle.

(Second invention)

The disposable medical device recycling system according to the second invention of the present application, based on the above three facts, has a disposable structure in which metal functional parts and plastic parts can be disassembled, as shown in FIG. Manufacturing system for manufacturing medical devices 21 1, Supply system 22 for selling or renting disposable medical devices and supplying them to medical institutions 22 Disassembling used disposable medical devices and sterilizing only metal functional parts The system consists of a collection system 23, which collects and collects metal functional components from the collected functional parts, and a component reproduction system 24, which inspects and regenerates them, and connects them in order to form a circle. is there.

The service life of the metal functional component in the first invention and the second invention is determined experimentally by repeating a cycle of simulated use, disassembly, inspection, and assembly of the disposable medical device. The specific method of determining the number of times of use is substantially the same as the method of confirming the number of uses of the metal functional component described as the second fact, which is the basis of the present invention.

By the way, if the system for recycling the disposable medical device of the first invention of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 is constituted by manufacturers involved in distribution and medical institutions, for example, a closed loop as shown in FIG. 7 is formed. . In other words, manufacturers 25 that manufacture disposable medical devices, medical institutions 26 that use disposable medical devices supplied by manufacturer 25, and used disposable medical devices that are collected from medical institutions 26 A closed loop is formed with the collection company 28 and the used disposable medical device collected by the collection company 28 after sterilizing it and delivering it to the manufacturer.

In addition, if the recycling system of the disposable medical device of the second invention of FIG. 2 of the present application is constituted by a manufacturer and a medical institution involved in distribution, for example, FIG. A closed loop is formed as shown in FIG. In other words, manufacturers 25 that manufacture disposable medical devices, medical institutions 26 that use disposable medical devices supplied by manufacturers 25, disassembled used disposable medical devices, and disassembled metal functional parts A closed loop is formed with the collection company 28 that collects from the medical institution 26 and the sterilization company 29 that sterilizes the metal functional parts collected by the collection company 28 and then delivers them to the manufacturer. You. The work of disassembling used disposable medical devices and separating metallic functional parts is performed by medical institutions or collection companies. It should be noted that the medical disposer 27 disposes of the disposable medical devices by disassembling the used disposable medical device and collecting the metallic functional parts.

According to the present invention, the following five actions are performed in order between the manufacturer 25 and the medical institution 26, for example, as shown in FIG. The first action is for the medical institution 26 to order disposable medical devices from the manufacturer 25.The second action is for the manufacturer 25 to deliver disposable medical devices to the medical institution 26. The third action is that the used disposable medical device is collected from the medical institution 26 to the manufacturer 25, and the fourth action is that the manufacturer 25 charges the medical institution 26 for the disposable medical device. The fifth function is that the medical institution 26 pays the manufacturer 25 for the disposable medical device. The price is a purchase price in the case of sales, and a use price in the case of loan.

As apparent from comparison with FIG. 10 showing the conventional relationship between the manufacturer 25, the medical institution 26, and the medical waste disposal company 27, the recycling system of the disposable medical device according to the present invention has It is clear that the cost burden of institution 26 has been reduced.

Next, a specific embodiment of the recycling system for disposable medical devices according to the first invention of the present application in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. In Fig. 3, in the disposable medical device assembling step 103, the new plastic parts from the stock of new plastic parts (101) and the stock of new metal functional parts (102) Alternatively, the metal functional component from the recycled metal functional component stock (1 15) is assembled. New plastic parts etc. Although not shown, the functional parts made of metal are stored after passing the acceptance inspection after being received from the parts manufacturer.

The assembled disposable curry medical device undergoes a pre-shipment inspection (104). Disposable medical devices that have passed pre-shipment inspection are stored in sterile packs, such as Plister packs, and then stored and packed in special storage devices. The exclusive storage device is, for example, an exclusive case or an exclusive bag. Labels with product numbers are affixed to blister packs, and labels with identification numbers are affixed to dedicated storage devices. Thereafter, the disposable medical device is sterilized by radiation in the packaged state. After radiation sterilization, the chemical indicator is attached to the special storage device, shipped, and delivered to a medical institution either directly from the manufacturer or via a sales company (105). At this stage, the chemical indicator is yellow before emission.

In hospitals, disposable medical devices are removed from special storage devices, unpackaged, and used by doctors for medical procedures (106). Disposable medical devices that have been used for medical practice are returned to blister packs and stored in special storage devices.

The used disposable medical device is collected from the medical institution using a special storage device by a collection company (107), and is subjected to radiation sterilization by a sterilization company (108). After radiation sterilization, the chemical linge attached to the special storage device turns red. Disposable medical devices that have been subjected to radiation sterilization are delivered to manufacturers by sterilization contractors.

The manufacturer refers to the usage history data managed by the data management system and determines whether the collected metallic functional parts used in the disposable medical device have been used within the service life. Examine (1 0 9). The service life was determined experimentally by repeating a cycle of simulated use, disassembly, inspection, and assembly of the disposable medical device. By checking the number of times of use at this stage, disposable medical devices to be disassembled can be sorted out early, and therefore those that should be discarded as industrial waste without disassembly can be sorted out early.

Disposable pull medical devices that use metallic functional components within the life cycle It is separated (110) and separated into functional metal parts and plastic parts (111). The disposable medical device, which is the object of the recycling system of the present invention, has a structure in which functional parts made of metal and plastic parts can be disassembled, so that it is easily disassembled, and the time and labor in the disassembly process are extremely small. .

The metal functional parts that are disassembled and sorted to become reusable parts undergo a cleaning process (1 1 2) using ultrasonic cleaning, etc., and a drying process (1 13) to remove deposits such as blood and body fluids. You. Next, it is checked whether or not the metal functional component that has passed through the washing step (112) and the drying step (113) can be used as a part (111). The inspection in this step is a shape inspection using a stereomicroscope, a dimensional inspection using an electronic caliper, and a cleaning inspection using a cleaning degree determination kit. The kit for determining the degree of washing is a commercially available kit for determining the stain by, for example, a change in color according to the protein mass.

The functional metal parts that have passed the inspection in step 114 are stocked as recycled products (115).

Those that did not pass the inspection in step 104 and step 114 and those that were not sorted out as metal functional parts in step 111 are separated into plastics and other materials and reused as materials, respectively. Or is discarded (1 18).

The embodiment of the disposable medical device recycling system according to the present invention has been described above in detail. Here, four points for establishing a recycling system for disposable medical devices according to the present invention, that is, low parts recycling cost, high quality assurance, safe recovery, and high recovery rate will be described again below.

(Low parts recycling cost)

The disposable medical device recycling system according to the present invention is intended to recycle disposable medical devices having a structure in which functional parts made of metal and plastic parts can be disassembled. Therefore, the time and labor required to disassemble the collected disposable medical device is extremely small. In addition, the metal parts to be recycled are hardly damaged or deformed during the disassembly work, so that a high yield can be recovered. For this reason, the disassembly cost that determines the amount of parts recycling cost can be kept very low, and a low parts recycling cost can be secured. (High quality assurance)

The high quality assurance of the disposable medical device according to the present invention is based on the fact that the service life of a metal functional component is a highly reliable value determined by a scientific experiment method, and that it is at least equal to the acceptance inspection of a new component. Strict inspections are performed in the parts recycling system to ensure this. In addition, the data management system, including the management of the use history of functional metal parts, ensures that both the manufacturing system and the parts recycling system are properly managed, which supports high quality assurance. The scientific experiment method for determining the service life described above is basically the same as the two-stage scientific experiment method described in the second fact on which the present invention is based. Each time a new metal part to be reused appears in a new or improved disposable medical device having a structure in which metal functional parts and plastic parts can be disassembled, the above two-step Useful life is determined by scientific testing methods.

(Safe collection)

Used disposable medical devices are returned to the blister bag, stored in a dedicated storage device, and collected by a collection company. Before being delivered to the manufacturer, it is subjected to radiation sterilization. Whether or not radiation sterilization has been completed can be reliably determined by the chemical indicator attached to the special storage device. Therefore, in the present invention, safe recovery of the used disposable medical device is ensured.

(High recovery rate)

Since the disposable medical device recycling system according to the present invention is a recycling system, it is desirable that all functional metal components to be recycled be recovered from the medical institution to the manufacturer. According to the present invention, it is obvious that the medical institution will actively cooperate with the primary collection work since it is not necessary to pay the disposal fee to the medical waste disposal company. Therefore, in the present invention, the recovery rate of the metal functional component to be recycled to the manufacturer is inevitably increased. If disposable medical devices are supplied to medical institutions in loan form, even if they have been used, the disposable medical devices are under the control of the manufacturer, so a higher recovery rate can be secured. Industrial applicability

According to the present invention, a recycling system for a disposable medical device having a structure in which a metal functional component and a plastic component can be disassembled is provided. According to the present invention, the functional parts made of metal are used as recycled products several times, so that the cost of purchasing the parts is reduced. In the recycling system of the present invention, new collection costs, sterilization costs, and disassembly costs are incurred. However, even if these costs are added together, they do not exceed the reduction in parts purchase costs. Can be reduced.

In addition, disposable medical devices that can be disassembled into metal functional parts and plastic parts will not be collected by medical waste disposal companies in principle, reducing the amount of medical waste. The cost of disposing of medical institutions has been reduced. Therefore, the total cost of the recycling system for disposable medical devices that can be disassembled into metallic functional parts and plastic parts is smaller than the total cost of conventional non-recycling systems, and the resources are reused. Has been implemented efficiently.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. Manufacturing system for manufacturing disposable medical devices through the process of assembling metal functional parts and plastic parts, supply system for supplying disposable pull medical devices to medical institutions, and sterilizing used disposable medical devices for manufacturers And a parts recycling system that recycles functional metal components through the disassembly process of collected used disposable medical devices, the sorting process of metal functional components within the service life and the inspection process. A recycling system for a disposable medical device, comprising: a disposable medical device having a structure in which a metal functional component and a plastic component can be disassembled.

2. Manufacturing system for manufacturing disposable medical devices through the process of assembling metal functional parts and plastic parts, supply system for supplying disposable medical devices to medical institutions, disassembled used disposable medical devices, and metal functional components A recovery system that sterilizes and collects only the refuse to the manufacturer, and a parts recycling that recycles the metal functional parts through the sorting process and the inspection process that select the components within the service life from the collected metal machinery g parts A disposable medical device recycling system comprising: a disposable medical device recycling system, wherein the disposable medical device has a structure in which a metal functional component and a plastic component can be disassembled. .

3. The recycling system for disposable medical devices according to claim 1, wherein the supply system is a lending system for disposable medical devices to a medical institution.

4. The disposable medical device according to claim 1, wherein the number of times of use is determined experimentally by repeating a cycle of simulated use, disassembly, inspection, and assembly of the disposable medical device. Recycling system for zable medical devices.

5. The recycling system for disposable medical devices according to claim 1, wherein the sterilization process in the collection system is a radiation sterilization process.

6. In the parts recycling system, based on the usage history data of the metallic functional parts contained in the collected used disposer care medical device, 3. The recycling system for disposable medical devices according to claim 1 or 2, wherein whether or not the functional component is a metal functional component is selected.

7. The supply of disposable medical devices to medical institutions in the supply system, and the collection of used disposable medical devices or metal functional parts from medical institutions in the collection system are performed using dedicated storage devices with identification numbers. The disposable medical device recycling system according to claim 1, wherein the disposable medical device is recycled.

8. The disposer pull medical device recycling system according to claim 7, wherein a chemical indicator is attached to the dedicated storage device.

9. Product numbers of disposable medical devices, part numbers of components that make up disposable medical devices, usage history data of metal functional parts to be recycled, identification numbers attached to special-purpose storage devices, etc. 3. The disposable medical device recycling system according to claim 1, wherein said data is managed by a data management system provided in a manufacturer.

10. The disposable medical instrument according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the medical instrument is a disposable endoscopic surgical instrument having a structure in which a metal functional component and a plastic component can be disassembled. Medical equipment recycling system.