A water-related issue has affected sterile processing operations at three Colorado hospitals, spurring the postponement of non-emergent surgeries.
Children's Hospital Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora is postponing non-emergent surgeries through at least Aug. 29, a spokesperson confirmed to Becker's. The hospital said it is responding to a "water-related issue" that has reduced sterile processing capacity.
"This decision was made to ensure we have the capacity to sterilize the instruments and equipment needed for urgent and emergency cases," Children's Hospital Colorado said in a statement. "We are assessing the need to postpone non-emergent surgeries for future dates."
Aurora Water, the city's water service agency, told The Denver Post that hospitals began contacting the agency Aug. 22 to report changes to their water. As of Aug. 27, city officials were still working to determine the cause of the issue, a spokesperson told the news outlet.
UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital, also in Aurora, started experiencing a water-related issue that affected sterile processing capacity on Aug. 22, a spokesperson said in a statement to Becker's. Some elective procedures were postponed while the hospital worked to resolve the issue, a spokesperson said. The sterile processing department is now back to normal operations, and the hospital is working with affected patients to reschedule delayed procedures as quickly as possible.
The water issue is also disrupting procedures at Rocky Mountain VA Regional Medical Center, a spokesperson for the VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System told Becker's.
The hospital "is limiting surgical and procedural cases to those performed with disposable instruments until safe sterilization can occur with the water supply," the VA said, adding it is working closely with the local utility company to determine the origin of the water issue.
More than 20 cases at Rocky Mountain Regional were postponed as of Aug. 27.