Sterile Service Technician

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust; Chorley; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 26,000; Full time

Job summary

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust is seeking a Decontamination Technician to support the sterile services department. You will decontaminate reusable medical devices, dismantle and reassemble instrumentation, and ensure accurate checks before sterilization.

You will collect dirty stock and distribute sterile instrumentation around wards, maintaining stock rotation and recording all steps on the department's tracking system. A full UK driving licence and GCSE-equivalent education are required.

Qualifications

• Educated to GCSE standard or equivalent and hold a full UK manual driving licence.
• Desirable criteria include basic hygiene and decontamination qualifications.
• Knowledge of sterile services and related hospital processes.
• Familiarity with One LSC and NHS shared services is beneficial.

Responsibilities

• Decontaminate reusable medical devices following departmental deadlines.
• Dismantle, clean, reassemble, and check instruments prior to sterilization.
• Collect dirty instrumentation and distribute sterile items to wards and clinics.
• Record activity on the tracking system and ensure stock rotation to avoid expiry.
• Input data to generate checklists, labels, and delivery notes using the track & trace system.

Skills

Attention to detail

Inventory management

Teamwork

Education

GCSE or equivalent

Full UK Manual Driving Licence

Basic Hygiene qualification

Decontamination qualification

Tools

Track & Trace system

Job description

To decontaminate re-usable medical devices effectively and in line with departmental deadlines requiring each set to be dismantled prior to cleaning and reassembled and checked prior to sterilization. Technicians must ensure that the instrumentation is accurate against the instrument checklists both at receipt and at dispatch and has been recorded on the tracking system., As part of this role the department is required to collect dirty and distribute sterile instrumentation around numerous ward and clinic areas.Ensure that stock, sets, and instrumentation is correctly rotated upon return to wards and departments to restrict the amount of sets reaching expiry. Input data to produce checklists, labels and delivery notes using the departments track & trace system. The track & trace system enables all items to be tracked at each stage of the process thus providing an assurance that all instrumentation had undergone the correct and complete process

• Educated to GCSE Standard or equivalent Full UK Manual Driving License
• Desirable criteria
• Basic Hygiene qualification Decontamination qualification
• Knowledge of work undertaken by Sterile services, Educated to GCSE Standard or equivalent, Knowledge of work undertaken by Sterile services
• One LSC is a new collaborative partnership shared service formed by the five NHS Trusts serving the Lancashire and South Cumbria population of 1.8 million people. We are a shared service run by the NHS, for the NHS and are hosted by East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust on behalf of the partner Trusts of the Lancashire and South Cumbria system.
• One LSC stands for 'One Lancashire and South Cumbria' and reflects the Lancashire and South Cumbria System ambition to have one team serving Lancashire and South Cumbria in a joined-up way. It is jointly run by the five Trusts as a collaborative partnership. The Trusts that make up One LSC are: Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust One LSC brings together the Digital, Data and Technology, Estates and Facilities, Finance, People Services and Procurement and Logistics services from each of the provider Trusts to create one central community of professionals. Under one leadership team, they will provide services for and on behalf of all Trusts. The aim is to bring services more closely together so that we can deliver the best service possible to each of our partner organisations. At the core of One LSC delivery is eliminating duplication, removing unwarranted variation, realisation of the benefits of sharing common systems and processes and ensuring we deliver value for money for our partners, our system and, ultimately, for the communities we serve.
• Please note that this post is Part of One LSC - a corporate collaboration hosted by East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust and providing Estates and Facilities Services to Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
• The Trust is an equal opportunities employer, committed to improving the working lives of our staff and operates a 'Zero Tolerance' policy to aggression, violence, bullying and harassment. In addition, our aim is to help protect children and vulnerable adults by providing a first-class service to the recruitment of people into positions of trust. We aim to employ a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from everyone irrespective of ethnic origin, gender, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, disability or social background. We especially welcome applications from members of our black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities, as we have identified that ELHT has an under-representation of BAME employees. Appointments will be made on merit.
• The Trust is an equal opportunities employer, is committed to improving the working lives of its colleagues and operates a 'Zero Tolerance' policy on aggression, violence, bullying and harassment. As a recruitment service, our aim is to help protect children and vulnerable adults by providing a first-class service in recruiting people into positions of trust. It is important to us that we employ a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from everyone - irrespective of ethnic origin, gender, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, disability or social background. We especially welcome applications from members of our black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities, as we have identified that as an employer we are under-representation of BAME employees. Appointments will be made on merit. We recognise that the recruitment process may present barriers for some and you may need personal adjustments to enable you to participate in our recruitment process. Please make contact with the recruitment team at the earliest opportunity to ensure that measures can be put in place to enable you to apply for this post.

It is important you are made aware of the following as regards your application to East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust

• Please note that the salary advertised is for full time hours. If this post is less than 37.5 hours per week, the salary will be pro‑ra… For posts on Agenda for Change pay-scales, new entrants to the NHS will normally commence on the first pay point of the relevant band.
• This vacancy may close before the closing date if the recruiting manager deems sufficient applications have been received. Therefore it is advised to complete your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.
• Please ensure you check the email account from which you apply regularly as we will use this to contact you regarding your application.
• Please note that shortlisting is completed anonymously with candidates being assessed against the essential criteria for the post. Therefore only applicants, who can clearly demonstrate how they meet our person specification criteria in their application, will be short-listed.
• Disclosure and Barring Scheme (DBS) If the role you are applying for is identified as either controlled or regulated activity as defined in in the Safeguarding vulnerable Groups Act (2006) any offer of employment is provisional upon a satisfactory DBS check being obtained. The healthcare sector is exempted from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. In line with other NHS organisations in the North West Region, the Trust is now passing the charge for undertaking a DBS check on to candidates in the event they are successfully appointed into the post for which they have applied. Candidates can choose whether to pay this over 1-3 months as a deduction from the monthly salary. However, if you are applying for a post as a BANK worker, the payment must be made in full at the time of employment checks. By applying for this vacancy you are agreeing to this undertaking in the event you are successfully appointed. The cost of an Enhanced Disclosure will be £55.38 and for a Standard Disclosure will be £27.38.
• Please note: a young person must be in part-time education or training until they're 18. If you are under 18 we are unable to employ you on a full time basis, unless it is in an apprenticeship role.
• Disclosure and Barring Service checks If the role you've applied for requires a Disclosure and Barring Services (DBS) check we will administer this on your behalf and the cost will be recovered from your salary, either as a one-off payment, or over 3 months. The level of check required depends on the role that you have been offered. Currently the charges are - Basic DBS check £26.40, Standard DBS check £26.40, Enhanced DBS check £54.40 and Enhanced DBS check with Barred List(s) £54.40. You should be aware that if you are successful in obtaining a position that requires a DBS check but later withdraw your application, you may be required to reimburse the cost of the DBS check. DBS checks remain free of charge for volunteer positions. The DBS Code of Practice can be accessed here. In line with guidance from United Kingdom Health Security Agency, all staff and volunteers are required to comply with Trust Infection Prevention and Control processes in relation to safe working.