Facing the standards gap: an autoclave for the rest of us

The international standards for sterile supply are embedded in western societies; their implementation requires a strong economy. However, due to many socio-economic limitations, transferring these standards (and the resulting advanced technology) to low-income countries is bound to fail. Manufactures are forced to comply with the standards and as a consequence appropriate sterilization equipment and related supplies for this market is hardly available anymore. A major problem is caused by the by the way the requirements for validation of processes have been defined. The current situation related to autoclaves (sterilizers using steam as the sterilizing agent) in target health facilities was analysed; followed by research and development and resulted in prototypes that eventually should mature to an adequate autoclave for the rest of us.