Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing)
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Fayetteville, AR, United States
Summary
Medical Supply Technician (MST) Lead is responsible for decontamination & processing of all reusable medical equipment (RME) at the Fayetteville AR VA Medical Center. The lead works in support of the Sterile Processing Service management team, distributes and prioritizes workload among employees in accordance with established workflow, and serves as the RME subject‑matter expert.
Qualifications
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.
English Language Proficiency: Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
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.
Education: One year above high school that included at least six semester hours in health‑care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, operating room, and surgical technician courses or other courses related to the position.
Experience/Education Combination: An equivalent combination of experience and education is qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.
Foreign Education: Education completed outside the U.S. must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs.
Grandfathering Provision: May qualify based on the Grandfathering Provision described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).
Certification: None.
Grade Determinations: Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) GS‑07 experience requires one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, including disassembling the reusable medical equipment and determining the correct cleaning method, inspecting, assembling, and determining the correct method and packaging for sterilization; demonstrating knowledge, skills, and abilities:
Ability to instruct staff on 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 to instruct staff on decontamination procedures.
Ability to lead individuals, manage priorities, and schedule work assignments.
Preferred Experience: None above KSA. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard – see https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
The full performance level of this vacancy is GS‑07.
Physical Requirements: Physical aspects associated with the work required of this assignment are typical for the occupation. May require standing, lifting, carrying, sitting, stooping, bending, pulling, and pushing; may be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment.
Work Environment: Work performed in an office/clinic setting with minimal risks, normal safety precautions, adequate lighting, heating, and ventilation; requires ability to handle several tasks at once in sometimes stressful situations.
Duties
Serves as senior expert in inventories, replenishes shortages from sterile supply, inspects for sterility integrity of instrument sets and expendables.
Adheres to and reports non‑compliance toward facility regulations regarding application and removal of personal protective equipment (PPE).
Ensures RME rotates at appropriate intervals, communicates needs for restocking outdated supplies, and maintains stock levels of surgical supplies and equipment.
Rounds with supervision to ensure daily housekeeping duties maintain environment of care.
Coordinates needs for stocking individual surgical case carts with required instruments for scheduled and emergency procedures.
Ensures staff operates automation equipment according to facility procedure to prepare, store, retrieve, or process information.
Trains new and lower‑graded employees at the request of supervision.
Decontamination:
Coordinates assignments for reusable medical supplies, instruments, and equipment.
Ensures staff decontaminates items by determining appropriate method for removing gross contamination by manual cleaning procedures.
Reviews adherence to disassembly, decontamination, and infection control practices in accordance with facility protocol.
Ensures staff operate automated reprocessing equipment such as ultrasonic cleaner and washer/disinfectors in accordance with facility protocol.
Monitors high‑level disinfection procedures and performs random quality audits for damage, deterioration, or imperfection.
Provides assistance in first‑echelon maintenance and troubleshooting of reprocessing equipment.
Assembly and Sterilization:
Ensures staff follow device‑specific instructions for use (IFU) and standard operating procedures while conducting assembly and sterilization.
Conducts rounds to review staff adherence to facility regulations regarding PPE application and removal.
Ensures quality checks for damaged or missing items and arranges replacements, maintenance, or repair as needed.
Coordinates workflow for assembly, prioritizing tasks for various sterilization phases.
Ensures daily spore testing and sterilizer control measures as related to quality assurance principles of sterilization and elimination of cross‑contamination; monitors and reports biological testing for each sterilization cycle.
Researches, recommends, and applies JCAHO, OSHA, and FDA standards pertaining to sterile processing and distribution of medical supplies.
Work Schedule: Monday‑Friday, various schedules including off‑tours, weekends, holidays, and on‑call; discussion during interview process and subject to change based on agency needs.
Benefits
Paid Time Off: 37‑50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13‑26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year); selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior work experience or military service experience.
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full‑time employees with total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401(k) with up to 5% contributions.
Insurance: Federal health, vision, dental, term life, long‑term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement).
Telework: Not available. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
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Medical Supply Technician (MST) Lead is responsible for decontamination & processing of all reusable medical equipment (RME) at the Fayetteville AR VA Medical Center. The lead works in support of the Sterile Processing Service management team, distributes and prioritizes workload among employees in accordance with established workflow, and serves as the RME subject‑matter expert.
Qualifications
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.
English Language Proficiency: Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
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.
Education: One year above high school that included at least six semester hours in health‑care related courses such as sterile processing, nursing assistant, hospital corpsman, operating room, and surgical technician courses or other courses related to the position.
Experience/Education Combination: An equivalent combination of experience and education is qualifying for entry level for which both education and experience are acceptable.
Foreign Education: Education completed outside the U.S. must have been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. programs.
Grandfathering Provision: May qualify based on the Grandfathering Provision described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).
Certification: None.
Grade Determinations: Lead Medical Supply Technician (Sterile Processing) GS‑07 experience requires one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, including disassembling the reusable medical equipment and determining the correct cleaning method, inspecting, assembling, and determining the correct method and packaging for sterilization; demonstrating knowledge, skills, and abilities:
Ability to instruct staff on 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 to instruct staff on decontamination procedures.
Ability to lead individuals, manage priorities, and schedule work assignments.
Preferred Experience: None above KSA. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard – see https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.
The full performance level of this vacancy is GS‑07.
Physical Requirements: Physical aspects associated with the work required of this assignment are typical for the occupation. May require standing, lifting, carrying, sitting, stooping, bending, pulling, and pushing; may be required to wear personal protective equipment and undergo annual TB screening or testing as conditions of employment.
Work Environment: Work performed in an office/clinic setting with minimal risks, normal safety precautions, adequate lighting, heating, and ventilation; requires ability to handle several tasks at once in sometimes stressful situations.
Duties
Serves as senior expert in inventories, replenishes shortages from sterile supply, inspects for sterility integrity of instrument sets and expendables.
Adheres to and reports non‑compliance toward facility regulations regarding application and removal of personal protective equipment (PPE).
Ensures RME rotates at appropriate intervals, communicates needs for restocking outdated supplies, and maintains stock levels of surgical supplies and equipment.
Rounds with supervision to ensure daily housekeeping duties maintain environment of care.
Coordinates needs for stocking individual surgical case carts with required instruments for scheduled and emergency procedures.
Ensures staff operates automation equipment according to facility procedure to prepare, store, retrieve, or process information.
Trains new and lower‑graded employees at the request of supervision.
Decontamination:
Coordinates assignments for reusable medical supplies, instruments, and equipment.
Ensures staff decontaminates items by determining appropriate method for removing gross contamination by manual cleaning procedures.
Reviews adherence to disassembly, decontamination, and infection control practices in accordance with facility protocol.
Ensures staff operate automated reprocessing equipment such as ultrasonic cleaner and washer/disinfectors in accordance with facility protocol.
Monitors high‑level disinfection procedures and performs random quality audits for damage, deterioration, or imperfection.
Provides assistance in first‑echelon maintenance and troubleshooting of reprocessing equipment.
Assembly and Sterilization:
Ensures staff follow device‑specific instructions for use (IFU) and standard operating procedures while conducting assembly and sterilization.
Conducts rounds to review staff adherence to facility regulations regarding PPE application and removal.
Ensures quality checks for damaged or missing items and arranges replacements, maintenance, or repair as needed.
Coordinates workflow for assembly, prioritizing tasks for various sterilization phases.
Ensures daily spore testing and sterilizer control measures as related to quality assurance principles of sterilization and elimination of cross‑contamination; monitors and reports biological testing for each sterilization cycle.
Researches, recommends, and applies JCAHO, OSHA, and FDA standards pertaining to sterile processing and distribution of medical supplies.
Work Schedule: Monday‑Friday, various schedules including off‑tours, weekends, holidays, and on‑call; discussion during interview process and subject to change based on agency needs.
Benefits
Paid Time Off: 37‑50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13‑26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year); selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual based on prior work experience or military service experience.
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full‑time employees with total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401(k) with up to 5% contributions.
Insurance: Federal health, vision, dental, term life, long‑term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement).
Telework: Not available. Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
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