Sterile Processing Technician I
About The Position
The Sterile Processing Technician ensures clean, functional, and well-stocked medical instruments and equipment. In this role, you’ll sterilize items through critical steps that protect patients from infection and support care teams. You’ll also build expertise in microbiology, infection control, and decontamination practices. POSITION SUMMARY This position demonstrates accountability for operating room readiness ensuring sterile surgical instrumentation and disposable supplies are complete and ready for a procedure prior to the preceding patient leaving the operating room. Responsible for the proper care and handling of all general and specialty instrumentation including the cleaning, decontamination, disassemble/reassemble, quality assurance, instrument identification, set assembly, packaging, sterilization, and distribution of surgical instrumentation for PeriOp Services, hospital departments, and clinics.
Requirements
- High school diploma/GED or equivalent working knowledge.
- Must have mechanical aptitude with the ability to break down moving parts, clean, lubricate and reassemble, problem solve incomplete trays and missing instrumentation and have effective organizational, communication and human relation skills.
Nice To Haves
- Complete national certification as an SPD Technician within one year of hire.
- Additional related education and/or experience preferred.
Responsibilities
- Provides decontamination and sterile processing support to PeriOp Services, ED, ICU, hospital wide departments, clinics both on and off campus, and ambulatory surgery centers. Provides various levels of service for the management of sterile surgical instrumentation and disposable patient care supplies. Support may-or-may-not include, decontamination of surgical instruments, assembly/sterilization, sterile instrument storage, partial or complete case cart support, OR core tech support and high-level disinfection.
- Responsible for the decontamination, assembly, and packaging of surgical instruments following established protocols, instructions for use (IFU) as well as performs required quality assurance, repairs, reassembly, documentation, sterility handling, and storage of specialized surgical instruments. Maintains required sterilization logs and quality assurance records relating to all equipment associated for the purpose of decontamination, HLD disinfection, and sterilization.
- Ability to interpret the surgical schedule and medical terminology as it pertains to scheduled procedures requiring sterile surgical instrumentation and disposable supplies needed. Able to address and communicate special needs to minimize delays to surgery. Responds to emergent calls from the Operating Room and performs preliminary investigation. Determines priority level of instrumentation requests and other hospital needs. Directs services in a competent and professional manner while assuring OR priorities are completed in a timely manner.
- Able to differentiate surgical instrumentation that is surgery owned, consignment/loaner, hospital depart, surgeon, ambulatory surgery center, and clinics both on and off campus. Completes necessary tracking of surgical instruments with a paper log sheet or computer process for instrumentation leaving the area. Reports needed replacement of surgical instruments to maintain the inventory and support readiness of sets.
- Utilizes specialized equipment for the decontamination, high-level disinfection, and sterilization of surgical instrumentation according to the device and equipment manufacturer’s recommendations and hospital policy. Operates steam and hydrogen peroxide sterilizers of various. Operates automated surgical instrument washers, ultrasonics, flush pumps, visualization devices, and cart washers to include high-level disinfectors where supported.
- Operates various quality assurance testing equipment associated to flexible endoscopic scopes, transesophageal ultrasound probes, and electro-surgical insulation defect detector for laparoscopic and energy provided surgical instrumentation. Utilizes heat detection devices to allow steam sterilized surgical instrumentation to be released for use without risking burns to staff and patients. Operates demagnetizers of stainless-steel instruments for ophthalmic and delicate cardiac surgical instrumentation for safe use on patients. Utilizes various borescope devices to inspect inner channels of lumened surgical instrumentation and flexible scopes.
- Maintains a clean and safe environment by adhering to Standard Precautions and Infection Control practices. Staff follow protocols for proper donning of personnel protective equipment (PPE) while completing the decontamination process referencing IFU’s supplied by the manufacturers.
- Maintain flexibility to rotate shifts and adjust hours as needed, maintain a work record of regular attendance, timely arrivals, and departures, maintain professional appearance appropriate to position and function.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
Education Level
High school or GED
Number of Employees
5,001-10,000 employees
