Medical Supply Tech (Sterile Processing)

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Albuquerque (NM); On-site; USD 42,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

New Mexico VA Healthcare Network seeks Medical Supply Technicians (Sterile Processing) in Sterile Processing Service (SPS). The role supports sterile processing operations and requires ability to maintain sterile technique and safety standards.

Applicants may be referred pending education or certification requirements; full appointment occurs once requirements are met. English proficiency and U.S. citizenship are required. GS-06 level with detailed KSAs and physical requirements apply.

Qualifications

• Six months of experience that demonstrates ability or understanding of the work.
• One year above high school with at least 6 semester hours in health care related courses.
• Equivalent combination of experience and education acceptable for entry level.

Job description

The New Mexico VA Healthcare Network is recruiting for Medical Supply Technicians (Sterile Processing) assigned to Sterile Processing Service (SPS).

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

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Experience and/or Education.
  • (1) Experience. Six months of experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides an understanding of the work; or
  • (2) 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
  • (3) Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combination of experience and education are qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.
• English Language Proficiency. MSTs must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with Veterans Affairs Handbook 5005.

Grandfathering Provision

All MSTs that are employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:

1. (1) Employees grandfathered into the GS-622 occupational series as MSTs may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journeyman) level, or changed to lower grade within the occupation.
2. (2) MSTs who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
3. (3) MSTs who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation.

Grade Determinations

In addition to the basic requirements, the following criteria must be used when determining the appropriate grade assignment of candidates.

GS-06 (Full Performance Level) Experience

One year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-5). To be creditable, experience must have demonstrated knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with Medical Supply Technician.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs)

1. Knowledge of surgical instruments used in operating rooms and clinic settings.
2. Knowledge of universal precautions for safety and prevention of cross contamination.
3. Working knowledge of medical terminology, anatomy and physiology, microbiology, medical conditions and procedures.
4. Knowledge of sterility principles in regards to instrumentation.
5. Ability to read and interpret written instructions and procedures.

Preferred Experience

Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) experience

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-06.

Physical Requirements

The work requires standing and walking during the entire workday with frequent bending and lifting of sterile packages and containers averaging 25 lbs. before and after sterilization or high-level disinfection. The work requires dexterity and visual acuity for manipulation, disassembly and assembly of instrumentation. Physical demands include bending, twisting, stooping, extending arms, lifting of heavy objects such as instrument trays to and from shelf heights ranging from 8 inches above floor level up 18 inches below ceiling height. Use of a safety step stool or safety step ladder is required to reach work area and equipment surfaces higher than what the employee can reach unaided (i.e., standing on the floor). Pushing and pulling of loaded sterilizer carts, transport carts, and surgical case carts is required.

The incumbent must be able to tolerate standing for prolonged periods of time, wearing impervious personal protective equipment (PPE), and higher ambient temperatures in the presence of heat-generating equipment. The incumbent must be able to tolerate ambient noise from reprocessing equipment and activities, and odors from contaminated RME and reprocessing agents.

On a regular basis the employee alternates between the clean, controlled environment of the preparation, sterilization, high-level disinfection, and sterile storage areas and the contaminated environment of the decontamination area. The incumbent must comply with attire and PPE requirements to protect RME undergoing preparation, high-level disinfection, or sterilization from contaminants, and to protect oneself from biohazards such as blood, body fluids, and tissues. The incumbent must also comply with PPE requirements or other controls designed for protection against hot surfaces and chemical agents used during cleaning, decontamination, high-level disinfection, and sterilization.