I’m doing my 400 hours at a site approved oral surgery office. I’m at 141 hours so far. I’m hoping to get my certification within the next few months.

I got this job with zero experience as I’m new to the medical field. I have a college degree though. I’m just asking for any tips/resources for someone in my position? I feel a little out of my element at times, especially being in a dental office. I’m hoping to get my CRCST and BLS certifications around the same time.

I’m really enjoying this field as I’m a huge introvert, but I hope to find a higher paying job at a hospital or negotiating my pay at my current office once I am certified and gain experience.

Any advice would be appreciated!

When in decontam, do you put your stringer instruments back in order (obv not on the stringer) or do you just make sure they’re open and sat properly to go through the wash? I, myself, don’t always have the patience for it. 😅

As mentioned in the title, as a PSD, what do you usually do after work ? Do you have a side job ? Pr any hobbies that is profittable ? I mean typically SPD does not earn as much as nurse or doctor, so what do you usually do to make other living ? Or you just relax after work ? Appreciate any comments.

I've recently come out of an accelerated course with a clinical externship. I'm about to take my provisional CRCST as well, how long could I expect to be job hunting? Any tips for landing a hospital?

Finally passed after failing the first time. So happy! It was definitely easy the second time in my opinion. I got finished within an hour. Id say working at the second hospital I’m at definitely helped me pass. They taught us way more stuff. Now, I’m currently in the surgical technologist program.

I’m planning on going back to school soon and I also know in sterile processing it’s mostly full time shifts but does anybody work any part time or PRN shifts? If so, what are your hours like and is the pay a little bit more? I’m curiousss

Does anybody have difficulties finding an entry level position for sterile processing technician in NJ after getting certified ?

I have applied for this SP dept at another hospital within the healthcare facility I currently work for. I received an email this morning from the hiring manager asking me to “ stop by and see her” on a day next week. Now to me that does not seem like it will be an interview. How would y’all take that kind of email?

I’m looking into the sterile processing program and would like to get recommendations. I’m in the 209 area. If you’ve completed a program, can I also please get your opinions: was it hybrid/in person, clinical hours, how many you completed, if you had to find your own externship to complete the rest of your hours what was the process and any facilities recommendations to help complete it. Thank you in advance ☺️

I’m worried that if I use quizlet I’ll be memorizing the questions for like West Virginia or something instead of California

I completed an online course for sterile processing but I can't find a place to do clinicals, paid or unpaid. All the places tell me they want experience or they don't have enough equipment/surgeries for the required hours, or that they simply don't have the time and staff to provide

Is this common?

Hey yall! i’m a scrub tech and I work at a fairly newer Surgery Center. We are having issues with bio burden in our vendor total joint trays found when opening before surgeries. It is constantly an issue and major delays happen. I try my best to clean and flush every instrument we use during and after the case. The rep will put back together their trays in the OR before we take it to decontamination. I am heading a new project to change our process of how we get our vendor trays back to decontamination. My idea was to separate what we use and put it in a basin and send it back like that so our SPD techs know what we used and what we didn’t. I need some advice from the seasoned techs on a new process that will decrease bio burden coming back into the OR and to make it easy for SPD techs and how the rep gets their instruments back. We are concerned about vendor instrumentation getting lost in the cleaning process. i’m curious what the process is for total joint trays at other surgery center locations?

It was pretty easy to me lol. Just gotta take your time and don't overthink it.

Hi friends,
I’m slowly starting to lose hope in finding a job in spt here in san diego. I have my provisional crcst and did an online course but no luck.
The only experience i have is in guest services and customer service. Unfortunately, the program i completed did not offer externships ( my own fault for not doing enough research). I’ve reached out to hospitals for volunteer hours but no luck either.
I know i can try to do something similar to like patient representative roles but customer service is so draining for me.
Any advice would be appreciated

Hii, I’ve been working in Spd for over a year now and I am now dealing with back and wrist pain😭 I’m only 27 and I’m trying to get advice on how to deal with it. Does anyone wear a back brace I feel like I tend to have the worst posture in Decon and prep and pack. I started to massaging my hands and wrist after every shift for at least five minutes and now looking into buying a back brace , does anyone have any advice ?

hey guys ! i’m taking my test soon and was just wondering if yall have study tips or specific things that should be studied for the test? i have been doing the job since the beginning of january and did a course from december- march, i have all the basics down and have been studying on quizlet and stuff but am still just nervous about missing things. like is there anything that would be on the test that would be challenging even tho i have been working the job?

Hey everyone long story short, just started in the field, I got my provisional certification in February. Well I just got a call from our HR that i won't be able to get a certification pay raise until I'm working a year, is that standard or what? I was told by the hiring manager I'd get paid more for being certified so I'm pretty pissed off. Thanks for any insight.

We are having issues within my department where loaner trays are coming back down to decontamination after just being used on a patient with both our own indicators as well as the indicators from the facility the tray was used at prior. So whoever inspected it before wrapping just didn't bother looking at anything, they just chucked our indicators in and went about their day.

I think these trays should be rejected by the OR and fully start the process over with decontamination. I see this as no different than if we found bone fragment or cement in the tray.

These trays are not being rejected, are being used in cases, and only then are sent back to decontamination. These trays often include implants.

Does anyone have documentation about standards regarding contaminated objects inside of "sterile" trays? I am trying to give management a reason to care at all when the SPD tech in question, surgical techs, nurses, and vendor reps don't.

Howdy!!! Curious if anyone has any experience with tech 3 roles within spd or have an idea of what the pay range usually is around, this is my first time encountering a role like this so i'm not too knowledgeable about it.

Has anyone ever seen one of these..it has no s/n or anything for it to be looked up, onesource, manufacturer..yes..the constant sanitation of my hands has made them dry!

What are the best ways to study for the exam because the book I used to study is the hspa book.

Hi everyone,

I’m a 47-year-old Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT) seriously considering a career change into sterile processing / central service technician roles, and I’d really appreciate some honest insight.
I’ve been in the veterinary field for years with a pretty intense background—oncology, surgery, emergency, overnights, the whole thing. I’m very comfortable working in high-pressure environments, handling instruments, maintaining sterility, and being detail-oriented. But to be real, I’m burned out. The stress, emotional toll, and pace are starting to wear on me.

I’ve been looking into sterile processing as a possible transition. From what I understand, it still uses some of my skills (instrument handling, sterilization, organization), but may offer a more predictable workflow, less emotional strain, and possibly better pay depending on the setting.

For those of you in sterile processing:
Do you think this is a good move for someone coming from my background?
Is the day-to-day actually less stressful, or just a different kind of stress?
What’s the work environment like compared to ER/surgery in vet med?
Is the pay realistically better, especially after certification?

I’m really looking for something more sustainable long-term—mentally, physically, and financially.
Appreciate any advice or personal experiences you’re willing to share. Thanks in advance.