r/sterileprocessing

I started sterile processing at a hospital 40 minutes away from me this week, and maybe it’s way too early to be having these thoughts, but I’m already wondering if taking this job was a mistake.
I’m 25 and honestly feeling pretty lost career-wise. Part of me is wondering if this is actually leading anywhere or if I’m just going to stay stuck making close to minimum wage. I’m making $19 an hour, and where I live that obviously isn’t enough to realistically move out of my parents house or build much of a future.
I’m also thinking about how much there is to learn and memorize in this job. There’s obviously a lot of responsibility, and I’m just questioning whether the pay is really worth everything that’s expected.
For people who’ve been in sterile processing for a while, did you ever feel like this starting out? Does it get better once you gain experience, or is this one of those jobs where the ceiling is pretty limited unless you move into management or something else?
I’m just not really sure where to go from here and would appreciate honest advice.

Hey everyone, I’m about to start my 3rd week training. Got certified a few months ago and was wondering how long it took everyone to feel like they were comfortable and equipped to handle the job?

I am CRCST certified and many online tests were fairly well representative of the HSPA exam for that.

However, I've read some conflicting reports about the accuracy of the other certification practice exams. For example, I'm just 3 months in on the job and I passed all 13 practice quizzes (20 questions each) and 3 practice exams (100 each) for the CIS with 80 to 90 percent without the book on my first go and that made me highly suspicious. Surely it's not that straight forward? It was mostly identifying instruments, with a few questions about test mediums for various instruments, as well as what can cause certain discolorations.

Does anyone know of online practice tests and educational content that IS representative of the current CIS, CER, and CHL tests that I can study ahead of receiving the manuals?

I’ve been a dental assistant for the past 5 years and I’ve also basically been the lead sterilization tech in my office handling instrument processing, sterilizers, biological monitoring, tray setup, infection control, etc.

I’ve been studying for the CRCST and was thinking about using my dental sterilization experience toward the 400 hours requirement instead of trying to get hospital SPD hours first since it’s honestly been difficult finding hospitals willing to let people come in for hours/training.

I know dental sterilization and OR/hospital sterilization are different, but would it still be a smart way to get certified first and then learn the hospital-specific side once hired? My thought process is that most hospitals train you on their specific workflows, instruments, and standards anyway.

Has anyone here transitioned from dental to sterile processing this way? Did employers care that your experience came from a dental office instead of a hospital?

Hi everyone so I recently landed a job as a sterile processing tech. Currently I work in a kitchen so of course food safety is important but this is totally different obviously. I’ve never worked in a hospital setting. So this is very intimidating.

I’m a little nervous though because I have zero experience however they will train me and by 18 months I need to be certified. What should I expect? I want to think the best but I’m really nervous and my mom keeps doubting me which isn’t helpful like asking me questions like what if you don’t pass? And all these things but I’m trying to think positive but hard when your own mother thinks like that.

So basically what should I expect? What should I know? Things to not do, things to do? How to study? What to study? Many questions..

TIA!!

Genuinely, because I know there’s enough of us who care about change in spd. Sure, striking looks different each decade but to have 4 generations on the floor at the same because of hospitals not paying their employees is difficult. What is your opinion on striking?

I'm gonna ask the main question now and put the long ass explanation after:

Is there truly no place for growth in SPD beyond managerial work? (I'm not interested in being a manager ever at all.)

if so, what are some career paths I could take where SPD experience is useful? (or what did you do to further your career in or out of SPD to get better pay/living situation)

Anyways, I'm halfway through my 400 hours and everyone around me at this job is calling the department dead-end saying that they need something better. Now I'm only 19, fresh out of high school, I have lots of time to change paths and yada yada, but like, I went into SPD thinking there was room for growth (I also didn't exactly understand the extent of the cost of living until recent). I guess I was just somewhat shocked. I honestly really enjoy the work that I am doing and have found that I'm not too bad at it either. I've been offered a job starting 23/hr, which is slightly higher than the average starting pay around me (for someone with no experience working in a non-trauma hospital,) however that wage is pretty unlivable in my state. The lowest rent I could find within 25 minutes of the hospital was 1250 a month, not including utilities, which basically splits my monthly income in half.

I was also told that the big trauma hospitals near me would likely start at around 24-25/hr.

I know that there are other certifications and specialties in SPD I can do, like endoscopic repossessing, which would hopefully give me higher pay, but I was wondering how much that truly helps. Does going to specialized facilities increase or decrease the pay? Outsourcing facilities? I've also considered things like night shift and becoming a traveler, however that feels more like short-term solutions that are somewhat unsustainable or difficult to work around if I ever were to go back to school.

Obviously, as I get more experience and see more departments I may find something I'm fond of. I often hear people say scrub tech, but I don't think I would fair well in actual surgery, seeing blood and stuff in decon is much different than seeing it on an actual person. I've kinda been playing around with the idea of learning stuff for biomedical but am still a bit unsure. I just want to hear everyone's thoughts and the paths you all took, and how money is working out for y'all.

Edit: I want it to be clear that I love SPD and the work I do!!! I dont plan on escaping the industry (not immediately at least) I just would love to make more money eventually because I feel the wage I make as a tech is a bit unsustainable for my future.

I was helping someone look at sterilization pouches for a small clinic set up and I really thought they were all just little paper-plastic sleeves that did the same thing. Then I found myself browsing Alibaba for a bit and there is way more details than I expected.

Some are self sealing, some require heat sealing, some have indicator strips, different sizes, different materials and all these little specs that probably matter a lot if you’re actually using them every day. ”It’s funny how something so plain-looking can have that many options.

Never posted this anywhere, just curious if people who work with these actually notice big differences between brands/types or if it mostly comes down to getting the right size and making sure the indicators work.

Hello! I interviewed for the sterile processing technician job at my local hospital today. i am not sure if it went well or not, we talked and made a lot of jokes. i feel as if i answered the questions well, but when i asked if i had any questions, i said “i know that i would be working with biohazards such as blood and fat, do you know what the risk of transmitting diseases such as HIV, Hep C, etc are?”. i know that i would be wearing PPE, i was genuinely just wondering. i worry that me asking that kind of blew the interview. however, at the end they asked if i wanted to see the department and i said yes! so i’m hopeful that means something good. should i worry about the question i asked, and in your opinion, is them giving me a tour a good sign or is that just standard?

I'm new to SP and moving from non-clinical patient facing, I'm always "business casual". I need advice on what to wear under my scrubs to stay comfy and hopefully not sweat too terribly much. Thank you!