Decontamination technician

NHS; Gateshead; On-site; GBP 22,000 - 28,000; Full time

Job summary

A public health service in the UK is seeking a candidate for decontamination and sterilisation duties. The ideal applicant will manage sterilisation processes, support training, and work to ensure compliance with health standards. Applicants should have relevant experiences such as NVQ3 in Decontamination and knowledge of infection control. This role includes responsibilities in a team-oriented environment and will involve both physical and technical tasks.

Qualifications

• Ability to work as part of a team and autonomously.
• Work accurately under pressure.
• Ability to work to Standard Operating Procedures.
• A working knowledge of keyboard, typing and computer skills.
• Ability to use initiative.
• Time management and organisational skills.
• Supervisory experience.
• Involvement with change, quality assurance and innovation work.
• Decontamination/warehouse experience.

Responsibilities

• Reprocessing of surgical instrumentation, endoscopes, and reprocessing waste in pathology decontamination.
• Inform senior staff if asked to work unsupervised without relevant training.
• Attend training courses as required.
• Assist with supervision and teaching in decontamination practices.
• Support departmental needs for monitoring and maintenance of equipment.
• Ensure routine tests are recorded according to guidelines.
• Conduct regular audits of decontamination processes.
• Inspect equipment within the decontamination cycle.
• Attend and participate in departmental meetings.

Skills

Ability to train staff in decontamination systems

Ability to stay calm/work under pressure

Flexible

Professional manner at all times

Good communication skills, written and spoken

Knowledge of Infection Control, Health & Safety, COSHH

Knowledge and experience in the decontamination of reusable medical devices

Education

Education to GCSE or equivalent, including Maths and English

NVQ3 (Technical Certificate Decontamination) or equivalent

Job description

• The post holder will undertake decontamination and sterilisation duties according to equipment requirements and assist the supervisors and managers in providing a high-quality accredited (EN ISO 13485:2016 & JAG) service, this will be inclusive of logistical responsibilities and store management processes of reusable medical devices utilised within clinical care, and the sterilisation of pathology waste.
• The post holder will be required to receive, disassemble, clean, disinfect, reassemble, pack, sterilise as appropriate, dispatch, transfer and store devices within controlled environments, ensuring comprehensive records of all tasks are maintained for tracking traceability purposes; this will necessitate the operation of specific computer and database applications.
• Because some tasks expected within this role are governed by regulation (UK MDR) the employee must work in accordance to national guidance and published research; the department’s Standard Operating procedures and quality management systems to ensure an effective and compliant service is delivered.
• The role will be a rotational post working between sterile services, endoscopy decontamination services, SSD logistics, and theatre store and pathology decontamination.

Main duties of the job

Reprocessing of surgical instrumentation, Endoscopes, theatre logistics and reprocessing waste in pathology decontamination.

About us

QE Facilities (QEF) is a wholly owned subsidiary company of Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust (GHNT), based in the North East of England.

We provide a range of non-clinical services to GHNT and other NHS organisations. Our services include: estates, facilities services, procurement, medical engineering and devices, endoscopy decontamination and sterile services, transport, out-patient pharmacy, and prevention & management of violence & aggression training (PMVA).

In addition we provide consultancy services, advising clients on all aspects of establishing a subsidiary company within an NHS body to the provision of VAT compliance advice.

QE Facilities work to their own Terms and Conditions and these are not the same as Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust Terms and Conditions. This is not an Agenda for Change Pay Rate.

We do not hold a sponsorship licence and are unable to offer employment under any sponsorship arrangement.

Job responsibilities

Inform senior staff if asked or expected to work unsupervised without the relevant training or level of competence.

Attend training courses and partake in any other training strategies (mandatory and non-mandatory) as required to maintain knowledge and skills as required, this may involve overnight stay away from home.

Participate in own 1:1 meetings and PDP development.

Assist with the supervision and teaching in decontamination practices to new and less experienced technicians.

Support departmental needs to ensure monitoring, maintenance & servicing requirements of endoscopes and theatre instruments are undertaken in a way that offers little service disruption and report accordingly to senior staff.

Ensure routine tests are undertaken and recorded in accordance with the Planned Preventative Maintenance Schedules, Quality Standards and Guidance.

Undertake regular audits of decontamination and sterilisation processes and action any discrepancies to departmental guidelines.

To adhere to the recommendations for the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) and risk assessments appropriate to the clinical area.

Inspect equipment within the decontamination cycle to ensure processes are effective.

Recognise devices by name and ensure theatre trays endoscopes are repacked correctly with correct instruments and ancillary items, responsible for checking loan devices/trays and ensuring the correct items delivered prior to clinical use.

Attend and participate in departmental meetings.

Support the development or refreshing of standard operating procedures according to service change and modernisation.

Will come into contact with remnants of blood, body tissue or offensive by-products as part of the cleaning cycles.

The role is physically demanding and requires significant amounts of manual handling.

Person Specification

Knowledge & Skills

• Ability to train staff in decontamination systems
• Ability to stay calm/work under pressure
• Flexible
• Professional manner at all times
• Good communication skills, written and spoken
• Knowledge of Infection Control, Health & Safety, COSHH
• Knowledge and experience in the decontamination of reusable medical devices

Experience

• Ability to work as part of a team and autonomously
• work accurately under pressure
• Ability to work to Standard Operating Procedures
• A working knowledge of keyboard, typing and computer skills(
• Ability to use initiative
• Time management and organisational skills
• Supervisory experience
• Involvement with change, quality assurance and innovation work
• Decontamination/warehouse experience

Qualifications

• Education to GCSE or equivalent, including Maths and English
• NVQ3 (Technical Certificate Decontamination) or equivalent level of knowledge and experience through decontamination training
• Willingness to attend training throughout the duration of being in post

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.