Sterile Service Technician

Job overview

We have a fixed term vacancy (maternity leave cover) for the role of Sterile Service Technician at UHCW NHS Trust. The successful candidate will work as part of a dedicated and hard-working team in the decontamination and reprocessing of reusable medical devices within the Sterile Services Department.

If you are flexible, hard working and have a keen eye for detail, come and join the team that keeps the surgical services throughout the Trust going, saving lives 365 days a year.

Please be advised that sponsorship is not eligible for this post.

Closing Date: Please be advised that this job advert will close as soon as sufficient applications have been received. Please apply for this job as soon as you can, if interested.

Secondment will be considered for internal candidates – If you are successful after interview, you must obtain approval from your current line manager to accept the offer.

Successful applicants will be required to provide an immunisation and vaccination report, from either their current UK occupational health provider or their UK GP.

Main duties of the job

We decontaminate, reprocess and return all reusable surgical equipment from UHCW NHS Trust and various other facilities - over 200 000 items a year, from single instruments up to surgical sets containing 100+ instruments.

Previous experience of working within a sterile services environment would be advantageous but not essential, as full training will be given by our experienced training team.

The ideal candidates will:

• Be diligent in their work
• Be physically fit and willing to work hard
• Have an excellent eye for detail
• Possess the ability to focus and avoid distractions
• Be team players but also confident working on their own initiative
• Be confident in closely following specific work instructions once trained

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Collect used equipment from service users in a safe and efficient manner in accordance with departmental and Trust procedures.
• Sort used equipment by decontamination category as specified by departmental procedures.
• Participate in daily housekeeping and equipment preparation checks in accordance with Trust and national standards.
• Undertake daily user tests as required on washer-disinfectors, approve for use.
• Undertake cleaning of medical devices by the use of washer-disinfectors or manually where required using personal protective equipment provided.
• Be able to recognise all surgical instruments and identify trays used within the trust once full competence training is completed.
• Identify instruments requiring dismantling prior to decontamination and dismantle when necessary.
• Examination of cleaned devices to validate cleaning processes.
• Assemble instruments, checking for safety and correct function in accordance with departmental procedures, specifications and best practice.
• Ensure cleanliness of persons prior to entering clean room, abide by clean room dress procedures and dress codes in the rest of the department and hospital.
• Package instruments as specified in the clean room.
• Assemble soft packs for wards and theatres.
• Maintain correct work patterns in dirty and clean zones of the sterile supply unit, conforming to clean room requirements as per operational directives.
• Use of autoclaves to sterilize devices ensuring cycle runs meet prescribed parameters and undertaking daily user tests as required following training.
• Receipt of equipment requisitions from service users, preparation, dispatch and transportation to the destination department ensuring correct delivery of requested items.

For further details of the role please see the attached job description.