Sterile Processing – Diploma

Surgical Instrumentation
Equipment Safety Management and Tracking
Decontamination & Sterilization Procedures and Practices

32 CREDITS – 810 CLOCK HOURS – 42 WEEKS

The Sterile Processing program is designed to provide students with the necessary knowledge and skills required to practice in the operating room environment. Sterile Processing Technicians work under the supervision of a surgeon and an operating room nurse to ensure that the operating room environment is safe, equipment is functioning properly and during the operative procedure all team members are maximizing patient safety. Students study topics that include hospital organization, safety and legal issues, anatomy and physiology, aseptic technique, surgical procedures.

Upon successful completion of the program, graduates will have acquired the skills required for entry-level positions in a variety of settings. Brookline College prepares students in the Sterile Processing diploma program to take certification and/or licensure exams related to their program of study.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the Sterile Processing diploma program, graduates will:

• Discuss the responsibilities of the Sterile Processing Technician and show sensitivity to diversity in this field.
• List the qualities a Sterile Processing Technician should possess and explain patient confidentiality.
• Demonstrate communication and interpersonal skills in the operating room when relating to others.
• Describe how to meet basic human needs in relation to patients and families along with describing safety measures in the health care facility.
• Define and interpret medical terminology, describe surgically treated diseases and disorders of the body system, and define and identify structural characteristics of basic anatomy and physiology, general regions of the human body, and principles of cellular functions.
• Describe the organization of the surgical suite, methods of chemical and physical disinfecting of the surgical environment, and the surgical technician legal responsibilities in the handling of drugs, solutions, and medications.
• Identify the composition of the surgical team, OSHA requirements relating to patient and staff safety, and methods of patient transportation. State the purpose of patient identification, the purpose of the consent, and responsibilities of informed consent.
• Categorize the team members according to the “scrubbed” and “unscrubbed” along with applying the principles of aseptic technique as it relates to infection.
• Obtain CPR certification in accordance with the American Heart Association.
• Perform sponge, needle, and instrument counts before, during, and after a procedure.
• List and describe various suturing procedures, identify various surgical instruments according to surgical procedures, and describe the various roles of the “scrubbed” and “unscrubbed” personnel.