Central Sterile Technician CSC Career Studies Certificate
J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College
Key Information
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Campus location
Richmond, USA
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
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Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
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Application deadline
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Earliest start date
Sep 2023
Scholarships
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Introduction
This program provides the technical knowledge and skills, along with the four-hundred (400) hours of practical clinical experience, needed for employment as a central sterile technician. Graduates of this program are educated and trained in central sterile technology under the International Association of Healthcare Central Service Materiel Management (IAHCSMM) and the Reynolds CSP Advisory Committee. Upon completion, students can take the IAHSCMM Certified Registered Central Service Technician (CRCST) certification exam.
The curriculum consists of basic science, infection control, sterilization, human relations, and the necessary job skills, combined with clinical experiences required for eligibility for the IAHSCMM CRCST examination. There is an emphasis on the care and preparation of surgical instruments. Classroom instruction and clinical experiences prepare the student to assume the role of a central service technician in various healthcare delivery settings.
This program is a combination of classroom, laboratory, and clinical learning experiences. The program can be completed in three semesters full-time. Program progress is based on whether the student is a part-time or full-time student.
Certified central sterile technicians work in hospitals, doctors' and dental offices, and outpatient surgical centres. Essential functions include cognitive, physical, and behavioural abilities necessary to perform a professional central sterile technician's duties. Central service technicians can be trained on the job, depending on the employer, but employers may favour applicants who have formal training and certification, which requires 400 hours of clinical experience.
After the program, students can:
Apply the principles and techniques of decontamination to render medical devices safe to handle without protective attire (decontamination);
Inspect, assemble, pack, and wrap medical devices in preparation for appropriate sterilization process and distribution (assembly);
Safely select and perform proper sterilization techniques, validate sterility assurance level monitoring, and maintain sterilization integrity during storage (sterilization and sterile storage);
Demonstrate professional conduct, communication, and work practices according to appropriate federal regulations, industry standards, and facility policies (professionalism and communication);
Integrate knowledge, skills, and dispositions acquired throughout the program to be prepared to function as a competent certified central sterile technician following guidelines established by IAHCSMM (practitioner).
Reynolds offers this program in affiliation with the health care agencies and practitioners in the communities the college serves and relies on its community affiliates to provide clinical education opportunities for its many courses.
Essential functions: Technicians work in environmentally controlled conditions and practise infection control as they are exposed to disease and infectious material. Potential students need to be aware that the work environment includes frequent exposure to electricity, electromagnetic fields, electronic media, and latex; and chemical hazards, including (but not limited to) disinfecting solutions, dyes, acetone, bleach, and alcohol. There is also possible exposure to toxic drugs, anaesthetic gases, ionizing radiation, and infectious agents (blood, urine, mucus, saliva, etc.)