Sterilization Technician

Title: Sterilization Technician
Practice: Midlands Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
Location: Columbia, SC
Hours:

Position Purpose:
The purpose of this position is to support the oral surgery team by ensuring all surgical instruments, equipment, and work areas are properly prepared, sterilized, and maintained to the highest safety and quality standards. This role plays a critical part in maintaining an efficient surgical environment by performing decontamination and sterilization processes, organizing and assembling surgical trays, and upholding OSHA guidelines for personal and workplace safety. The position contributes to exceptional patient care by supporting clinical staff, anticipating surgical needs, and fostering a clean, compliant, and collaborative environment.

Essential Functions

Instrument Reprocessing & Sterilization

• Perform decontamination, cleaning, inspection, packaging, and sterilization of surgical instruments and equipment in accordance with established protocols and safety standards.
• Operate and maintain sterilizers, ultrasonic cleaners, and other reprocessing equipment following manufacturer guidelines.
• Monitor sterilization cycles and maintain accurate logs and documentation for compliance and traceability.
• Inspect instruments for proper function and report damage, missing, or unsafe equipment to appropriate personnel.

Surgical Tray & Room Preparation

• Assemble, organize, and prepare surgical trays and materials to ensure timely availability for procedures.
• Assist with the setup and breakdown of surgical rooms, ensuring all necessary instruments and supplies are prepared and readily available.

Infection Control & Safety Compliance

• Maintain a clean, safe, and organized work environment in compliance with OSHA, infection control, and practice standards.
• Adhere to all personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements and follow strict safety procedures to minimize contamination or exposure risks.

Clinical Support & Communication

• Support the surgical and clinical team during procedures as needed, within the scope of the role.
• Communicate effectively with clinical staff to ensure proper instrument flow and anticipate surgical needs.

Inventory Management

• Maintain inventory of surgical instruments, supplies, and sterilization materials.
• Notify leadership when stock levels are low or when replacements are needed.

Training & Professional Development

• Participate in ongoing training and maintain current knowledge of sterilization techniques, equipment usage, and infection control standards.

Qualifications

Education:

• High school diploma or equivalency, required.

Experience:

• Previous experience in a dental, oral surgery, medical, or sterile processing environment preferred
• Experience with sterilization processes, including cleaning, decontamination, packaging, and autoclave operation, strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with OSHA, infection control, and universal precaution protocols in a clinical setting.
• Experience working with surgical instruments, including identification, inspection, and proper assembly of instrument trays.
• Hands-on experience using sterilization and cleaning equipment, such as autoclaves, ultrasonic cleaners, and steam sterilizers.
• Experience working in a fast-paced clinical or surgical environment, demonstrating the ability to prioritize and multitask.
• Customer service or patient-facing experience in a healthcare setting is helpful but not required.

Performance Requirements:

• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Professional appearance and attitude
• Ability to take directions from others and follow through in a concise manner
• Ability to multi-task
• Must work well in a close team environment
• Maintain knowledge of equipment, expected patient outcome, and anticipated complications

Benefits:

• We offer Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance plans to our full-time employees.
• Two out of the three medical plans offered include Health Savings Account (HSA) eligibility.
• Company-paid Life, AD&D and Long-Term Disability coverage.
• Additional Voluntary Life and AD&D Insurance for you and your family!
• Voluntary Short-Term Disability Insurance available to you as well
• Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA) offered.
• Immediately begin saving for retirement through our 401(k) starting with very first paycheck!
• Employer 401(k) contribution and Profit Sharing after six months of employment
• PTO and 8 Paid holidays for fulltime employees!

DISCLAIMER
The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of the work being performed by people assigned to this work. This is not an exhaustive list of all duties and responsibilities. OSP’s management reserves the right to amend and change responsibilities to meet business and organizational needs as necessary.