CSS Tech 1

Yale New Haven Health•New Haven, CT

About The Position

The CSS Tech 1 is responsible for preparing trays and equipment and processing general and specialty surgical instruments. Duties include cleaning, decontamination, inspection, assembly, wrapping, sterilization, quality-control testing, monitoring sterilization equipment, and maintaining records. The role may also include cleaning, stocking, transporting, and dispensing supplies and equipment. Employees are expected to support YNHHS’s vision and mission and demonstrate its values of integrity, patient-centeredness, respect, accountability, and compassion.

Requirements

High school graduate or equivalent.
Requires either six months of experience employed as a central service technician in a healthcare facility prior to January 1, 2016, or a certified registered central service technician credential administered by IAHCSMM, or a certified sterile processing and distribution technician credential administered by CBSPD.
Must be competent and physically able to perform all CSS duties independently, including decontamination, assembly, sterilization, and distribution.
Must have no current written disciplinary actions and meet or exceed production standards.
Applicants without experience or certification must obtain an IAHCSMM certified registered central service technician credential or a CBSPD certified sterile processing and distribution technician credential within 24 months of hire.
Must earn and maintain an IAHCSMM or CBSPD credential within the stated timeframe and complete at least 10 hours of relevant continuing education annually to maintain certification and/or central service technician employment status.
Knowledge of operating-room surgical instrumentation and quality-assurance practices.
Ability to assemble CSS, One Day Surgery, and Main Operating Room surgical instrumentation.
Excellent knowledge of CSS operations, sterilization equipment, and sterility-assurance practices.
Proficiency in biological monitoring, sterilization-equipment testing, documentation, and record keeping.
Strong problem-solving, communication, medical terminology, and critical-thinking skills; ability to work effectively in potentially stressful situations and demonstrate high-reliability behaviors.
Ability to lift at least 30 pounds repetitively; push, pull, bend, stand, walk, lift, and carry during eight-hour shifts; perform fine hand manipulations; and follow written and verbal instructions.
Mental alertness and ability to perform multiple tasks, work under stress, and sustain work in a fast-paced environment.

Responsibilities

Provide accurate, properly functioning instrumentation for surgical procedures, ensuring appropriate processing, storage, and usage based on scheduled and anticipated demand.
Remove, assemble, sort, and scan instruments from washers and sterilizers into SPM.
Manage case-cart picking using SPM and appropriate pick sheets; follow standard setups and quality-assurance procedures and deliver completed carts on time.
Use Epic and SPM to obtain and apply the correct DPC sheets for case-cart preparation, ensuring accuracy for the scheduled case type and consulting a supervisor or Tech II resource when needed.
Process user requests accurately, efficiently, and courteously.
Answer department telephone calls courteously within three rings, identifying the department.
Manage information received or needed during daily activities and respond appropriately to machine alarms and warnings.
Perform sterilization accurately and on time, following documentation requirements and daily quality-assurance procedures in SPM.
Perform daily biological testing of each steam sterilizer and biological validation for every sterilization load.
Assemble and package instruments and supplies according to priority and daily assignments, using inventory and assignment information to identify single-instrument needs.
Perform decontamination procedures that prevent organisms from transferring to the sterile area.
Check case carts, remove used carts from the elevator, and sort instruments and supplies.
Meet department production standards for instrumentation case care, decontamination, sterilization, and preparation and packaging.
Produce kits according to priority at a rate meeting or exceeding the department standard of 900 instruments per eight-hour shift.
Meet department standards for high-level disinfection and scope processing.
Inspect scopes for point-of-use pre-cleaning; follow manufacturer instructions for pre-cleaning when needed, manually clean channels containing lumens, perform leak testing according to IFUs, and demonstrate competence in manual and automatic reprocessing.