Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing)

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Shorewood Hills (WI); On-site; USD 55,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

The US Department of Veterans Affairs' William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital in Madison, WI, seeks a Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) to oversee decontamination, preparation, and sterile supply operations within the Sterile Processing Service.

The role requires knowledge of cleaning methods (ultrasonic cleaners, mechanical washers), ability to train staff, and strong adherence to safety directives. Applicants with related experience or health-care education qualify.

Qualifications

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• English language proficiency in speaking and writing.
• Six months of related experience or one year of postsecondary education in health care courses.
• Grandfathering provision may apply for current VA employees.

Responsibilities

• Receive contaminated equipment and determine cleaning method (ultrasonic, washers, carts).
• Disassemble, inspect, and package for sterilization according to manufacturer instructions.
• Lead staff and supervise workflow, prioritize tasks, and assign work.
• Instruct staff on procedures and ensure compliance with directives.

Skills

Sterile processing knowledge

Staff instruction ability

Communication skills

Team leadership

Education

One year of college with health care related courses

Job description

This position serves as the Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) at the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital in Madison, WI within Sterile Processing Service.

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements

• U.S. Citizenship: Must be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• English Language Proficiency: Must be proficient in spoken and written English.
• Experience and/or Education:
  • Experience. Six months of experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work; or
  • Education. One year above high school that included at least 6 semester hours in health care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, and operating room and surgical technician courses or other courses related to the position; or
  • Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.

May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations

GS-07 Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing

Preferred Experience

One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-6). To be creditable, the experience must have demonstrated the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) associated with Medical Supply Technician responsibilities. Experience at this level includes, but is not limited to: Receiving contaminated critical and semi-critical RME in the decontamination area; disassembling the RME and determining the correct cleaning method, such as ultrasonic cleaners, mechanical washers, cart washers, and chemical cleaning/decontamination agents, as determined by the manufacturer instructions; inspecting, assembling and determining the correct method and packaging for sterilization.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities.

• Ability to instruct staff on the correct procedures and protocols for completing assignments.
• Skill in communicating with staff to ensure compliance with written directives, rules and regulations.
• Skill in interpersonal relationships in dealing with employees, team leaders, and managers.
• Knowledge of sterility principles in order to instruct staff on decontamination procedures.
• Ability to lead individuals, manage priorities, and schedule work assignments.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-07.

Physical Requirements

This work is performed in various settings: decontamination, preparation, clean sterile supply (preparation) and in other services and departments throughout the medical facility/campus. The incumbent may be required to work in areas that are hot, cold, drafty and poorly lighted. The employee is subject to the possibility of falls, scrapes, cuts, bruises, and other injuries from material handling equipment. The work requires standing and walking during the entire workday and frequent bending and lifting of packages (occasionally weighing as much as 50 pounds). The work requires dexterity and visual acuity for manipulating, disassembly and assembly of instrumentation.

On a regular and recurring basis, the employee alternates between a contaminated environment and a carefully controlled clean environment. The employee wears special clothing, hair covers, personal protective equipment and shoe covers that can be uncomfortably warm. The employee uses insulated gloves to remove carts from sterilizers. The employee is subject to burns from accidentally touching hot items. The hazards of working around minute quantities of sterilizing gasses are unknown. The employee often works around body fluids, mucous, excretions and bits of tissue, some of which may be foul smelling. Strong, unpleasant odors are encountered while decontaminating bloody or grossly contaminated instrumentation or reusable medical equipment. The work area is noisy due to the clatter of metal instruments, rumbling of carts and operation of pre-sterilizing equipment.