Supervisory Med Supply Tech (Sterile Processing) - Assistant Chief

Department of Veterans Affairs•Tucson, AZ

28d•Onsite

About The Position

This position is located within the Sterile Processing Service at the VA Southern Arizona Health Care System (SAVAHCS). The Assistant Chief contributes to the oversight of all supervision, administrative management and direction of the Sterile Processing Service. Oversees all decontamination, sterilization and disposition of facility critical and semi-critical reusable medical equipment (RME). Contributes to the effective utilization of resources, budgetary allocation and fiscal management. Duties and responsibilities of the Supervisory Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) - Assistant Chief include, but are not limited to:

Responsibilities

Responsible for the quality management system activities within Sterile Processing Services, to include training, competency assessment, development and enforcement of standard operating procedures.
Provides technical and direct supervision to over 4 Supervisory Medical Supply Technicians.
Manages, directs and adapts work to accomplish program goals and objectives, and to meet new and changing program requirements.
Serves as liaison between Sterile Processing Services (SPS) and other departments.
Assists Chief of Sterile Processing Service (SPS), in managing the SPS Equipment Inventory Listing (EIL) for equipment assigned to SPS such as sterilizers, washer/disinfector, ultrasonic, sealers through the nonexpendable property program for the assigned facility/system and requests replacement of all equipment under their purview as needed.
Serves as a member or in an advisory capacity on committees such as Commodity Standardization, Infection Control, Environment of Care, and Reusable Medical Equipment in the absence of the Chief.
Issues, adapts, implements and maintains local SPS policies and procedures as applicable to specific facility/system programs.
Assists the Chief, SPS in developing, directing and maintaining a Quality Control Program ensuring product quality assurance through random sampling, biological monitoring, product assessment and other means, and providing specific reports as required.
Solicits assistance from, or responds to, inquiries from outside regulatory and advisory agencies to ensure compliance with established policies and procedures from organizations such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI), Joint Commission (JC), International Association for Healthcare Central Service Materiel Management (IAHCSMM), Association of perioperative Nurses (AORN), and others.
Conducts departmental orientation, training, skills review and assists with educational programs to maintain high staff quality performance standards. Identifies and promotes staff development.
Assists Chief, SPS in preparing and evaluating future scheduling projects, anticipating future workload requirements to forecast appropriate staffing levels.
Works closely with Supply Chain Management to monitor inventory levels to identify and take corrective action on matters relating to potential inventory shortages created because of additional case volume, scrap, or any customer related skills that may exist.
Oversees appropriate reprocessing of reusable medical equipment (RME) to eliminate risk of infection and to provide timely safe patient care in all patient care areas.
Develops policies and procedures that meet the infection prevention standards set by JC, AAMI, AORN, IAHCSMM and others and for monitoring compliance with those policies to meet established local, VISN, VHA and JC requirements for safe patient care.