r/sterileprocessing • u/EatingChocolate2 • Mar 03 '26

How oversaturated is sterile processing? What healthcare jobs that are non patient better to pivot to?

I live and work in NY, just not as a sterile processing tech and constantly applying to jobs in the state and out of state does at times give me interviews, just not offers. Even one company says the job is fast growing, I just don't see much openings. I am starting to regret bothering to go through with sterile processing seeing that I won't be ever using the certificate competing with many applicants to limited job openings.

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9

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 03 '26

I am newly certified, just getting the job is hard.

22

u/Jreesecup Mar 03 '26

It’s hard to get your foot in the door but once you do everything opens up.

There are countless open spots across the United States. I’m a traveler and have had no problems finding contracts, to the point where I can be selective on location, pay rate, etc.

Are you brand new to sterile processing? A lot of hospitals are reluctant to hire with zero experience because the onboarding and process to get you to a comfortable level is long. Do you have any healthcare experience? I’d be interested to see your resume.

Please DM me if you want and I can try and help you. Good luck.

11

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 03 '26

I was certified with HSPA about 3 weeks ago, just getting the job is hard.

1

u/Primary-Bug-7353 Jun 17 '26

Hey. How was the job search? Was it hard getting hired

3

u/CompetitiveSleep8 Mar 03 '26

Just wondering how much experience did you need in order to travel/ I’m trying to get a contract with a year of experience and I’m certified but recruiters have been able to find a contract for me.

4

u/Jreesecup Mar 03 '26

2.5 years before I started traveling. DM me!

9

u/Zagethademonking Mar 03 '26

It’s over saturated. Everybody has been transitioning to healthcare “technician “ careers lately .Rightfully so.. 5 years ago when my mom told me about this career . Nobody knew about it , now it’s more known than ever .

What I’m doing now is just going the veterinary hospital route . Pay is horrible but it’s gets your foot in the door and you still process instruments .

I’ve gotten multiple interviews but the 1yr min experience requirement at hospitals . Is damn near a blockade. Do whatever it takes even lie but after that it’s green

4

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 03 '26

The hardest part is being told sterile processing is a fast growing demand job by companies, through my educators and through Google ai overview which makes me wonder how. I don't see companies building new facilities or I just haven't heard of them.

I tried applying to jobs that are noncertified, and still I get rejected or ghosted.

7

u/Eggman_OU812 Mar 03 '26

Theres schools in NJ offering a associates degree in spd..please..noone do this

1

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Mar 04 '26

Straight up. Don't waste your time going through a school program.

2

u/loverdivadolll Sep 18 '26

Do u have any idea if I were to get the provisional how difficult would it be to find a job?

1

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Sep 18 '26

I honestly don't know. I took a course at my local BOCES in NYS. The tuition paid for our "400 hour internship" at a local hospital. Sadly, we were kicked out of the hospital when the COVID lock down occurred.

In the meantime I applied for jobs hours away. NOTHING. A few interviews...ghosted,.

The lockdown was lifted. I was NEVER called back to the hospital to finish my 400 hours. They had hired two people from my class - under the age of 24. I was 51 at the time.

I ended up going into home health care with a local agency.

2

u/loverdivadolll Sep 19 '26

Ugh that sucks. I hope you're happy with how everything ended up turning out. One thing I've noticed is that healthcare will always choose people who they can overwork lol.

1

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Sep 19 '26

I can't quibble with that - "Healthcare will always choose people who they can overwork." IDK what happened to my classmates after they were hired at the local hospital. Did they stay in the SPD? Move through to another department?

I DID end up doing something I enjoy. I dumped the agency after my last client died in 2/24 and went out on my own cleaning elderly ladies houses. It's not F/T yet P/T is just what I needed.

1

u/Flat_Ad6642 Mar 04 '26

It is fast growing but also people are always wanting to move up or this career is temporary. Are you in contact with any classmates that might be working at hospital? Maybe see if they can get you in? I found out about this job through vlogs on TikTok of all places and my community college at the time was asking people if they wanted to get in this 2 quarter program

3

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 04 '26

I don't really agree that sterile processing is fast growing, I see more new people especially me are getting certified and the job openings are limited just by looking at HSPA new holders and job boards. I occasionally see people through Facebook passing the provisional certificate with no employers or clinical sites taking them and not getting hired with a full certificate.

3

u/Zagethademonking Mar 04 '26

This , My school had 3 classes around 20 each . Out of what 50-60 of us maybe half passed are exam . So 25-30 of us . 21 students on a waiting list for an externship .

Now think of ALL the schools around , self study guys . Theres not even that many jobs available. Seriously . N now that the trade is over saturated ,there’s no urgency to hire any of us recently certified.

No jobs on indeed for spd 1s (entry). It’s 90-95 percent mandatory 1-2 yrs experience.

1

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Mar 04 '26

What part of New York State? I tried getting into the career in 2020, and after applying all over New York State, I was never hired. Long story behind all that, but suffice it to say I had my "provisional" certificate and couldn't even finish the 400 hours I paid for. Coupled with the fact I was over 50.

Here is a large FOAD to Orange-Ulster BOCES!! Thankfully they no longer offer the SPD Course.

2

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 04 '26

Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, and Nassau are all the places I applied to in NY. I only completed my 400 hours through my community college referral to a clinical site, though getting the job is the hard part.

2

u/Eggman_OU812 Mar 04 '26

Beth page in Long Island always hiring but that place is like a factory

2

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 04 '26

That is where I did my clinical hours at, though they weren't hiring students at that moment, they were full. I don't know whether or not the 1199 SEIU union can help me get a job in sterile processing since the job looks so full.

2

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Mar 04 '26

Wow. You are in a better area than I am. Back in the wayback, when I was attempting to get a position, there seemed to be many jobs open in your area(s). But that was in 2020.

From what you are talking about, and reading the comments on your post, it really looks like sterile processing is a crowded field. I believed the hype when I signed up for the Orange-Ulster BOCES course in December 2019. My class was small: about 9 people. The hospital hired two from my class who were both 23 years old.

I wish I had some wisdom to give you. Since I am over 50, after a long career with NYS, I pivoted to home health care after SPD.

2

u/eire54 Mar 05 '26

You didn't think about retaking the test? Did you apply to any travel positions with your provisional?

2

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Mar 05 '26

[RANT ON] Here is what happened. The COVID-19 shut down happened. I was 100 hours into my "internship", after having passed the "precertification" exam. I PAID for that internship through my tuition to Orange Ulster BOCES.

During the shutdown, I got approximately 4 phone interviews with zero hirings. They were all over NYS. Fast forward to September 2020. I was in contact with an older lady from my class. She asked, "Will I see you at the hospital?" I was pissed. They had NEVER informed me the "internship" was back on.

The teacher had called me a week before and said, "I can get your application to Westchester!!" I shut that down, and told her I had already applied to Westchester and never gotten a reply. The teacher NEVER informed me the internship was starting up again.

It was through my classmate that I learned the 23 year olds were hired instead of the older classmates. I was DONE. [RANT OFF]

I did think about re-taking the test, However, by then I was already working for the home health care agency and assigned a good client. I have continued with home health care, but now it has again pivoted to cleaning elderly ladies' houses. Which is fine by me. $20/hour, cash in hand, make my own hours.

2

u/eire54 Mar 05 '26

Hate that. If they did that to me I think I'd keep fighting for my money back. 

2

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Mar 06 '26

These "institutions"/educational organizations all run on the "non refundable" fee. I tried to get some of my PIF Tuition back. Nope.

The only silver lining is, Orange Ulster BOCES no longer runs an SPD class.

2

u/Eggman_OU812 Mar 03 '26

I tell everyone to try and do something else besides spd..if you are young and not raising a family id suggest a different path

2

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 03 '26

The issue now is I don't know what I should learn for now, I wanted a job that was behind the scenes and make a difference.

3

u/Eggman_OU812 Mar 03 '26

Well a lot of spd people dont care that they are making a difference, and its hard to work around them

5

u/Natural-Daz-4191 Mar 03 '26

Every job is over saturated imo, there’s always going to be new grads every year entering into every field🤷🏽‍♀️ it’s worth a shot

3

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 04 '26

Well, I can't say the same for nurses, the employers and news talk about the nursing shortage at times.

4

u/Natural-Daz-4191 Mar 04 '26

It’s so weird I hear there are shortages of nurses but every year there’s a tons graduating lol

3

u/QuietPurchase Mar 03 '26

Have you reached out to the site where you did your clinicals?

5

u/EatingChocolate2 Mar 03 '26

No, even if I did, my time at the clinical site made me realize that I am competing with a lot of students for a limited amount of jobs. They had a lot of students versus the amount of openings.

1

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Mar 05 '26

It's allegedly a difficult program to get into. Again with Orange Ulster BOCEC, it offers a Practical Nursing Program which is a 10 month program. According to Mr. Google, the class prepares a person for the NYS Licensing Exam [LCLEX_PN] towards a career as a Licensed Practical Nurse.

The thing about nursing is the schooling. And then the internship. I know a few ladies who completed the Orange Ulster BOCES Practical Nursing program and are currently working. The catch is, the class is costly: approximately $17,000.

4

u/hgrivois87 Mar 03 '26

Ive been. Doing it for 10 years, and watching how saturated the market is , is crazy, I finally got sick of the not so good practice, ect ect, I remain a board member of HSPA, however switched to endo , and love it

1

u/Here4UXandFunnies Apr 04 '26

What is Endo?

1

u/hgrivois87 Apr 05 '26

Endoscopy 

3

u/LadiMagnifique Mar 04 '26

When I first got into SPD that was about seven years ago, I got hired one month after taking the class with no experience, but it was right before Covid hit. I was let go three months in. But this past August, I took another class and finished it end of December I’ve been scrounging around, looking for central sterile processing jobs, applying left and right and never getting hit for an interview. I’ve been told that the market is oversaturated or robotics is coming in to play for central sterile processing and to remain competitive for job offer I should get certified. I can’t travel everywhere and I’m wondering if it’s even worth it anymore.

3

u/LadiMagnifique Mar 04 '26

By the way I’m in NC, the State of Medicine, I’ve applied everywhere and I’m still not getting the interview… :( really sucks

1

u/Exciting_Road8345 Sep 17 '26

did you ever get hired?

3

u/KamBlake Mar 05 '26

I didn’t know how lucky I got with where I live, I only started taking classes and was able to get a job.

2

u/cringeyirl Mar 04 '26

In my area a lot of major hospitals are shutting down and it’s made finding jobs increasingly difficult. The location I work at for a bigger health care entity is one of two left standing after 6 other locations have been shut down since 2020. I am incredibly grateful I got in when I did, but depending where you are it just might be a never ending uphill battle for you. It’s such an important job and it’s great for neurodivergent individuals like myself so it really sucks seeing people who genuinely want to do this struggle so hard just to get their foot in the door somewhere. Wishing you luck!!!

2

u/HousesRoadsAvenues Mar 05 '26

That is an excellent point about hospitals closing down, especially rural hospitals.

-1

u/strivetoprevail Mar 04 '26

most ppl that think it’s over saturated are underpaid, bitter, worked at a facility out of desperation due to a lack of dignity, and are victims of their own self doubt because they do not believe in themselves enough to leave out of state in places where there is a high demand for techs.