Processing Supervisor

The Central Processing Manager is responsible for the overall leadership, coordination, and daily operations of the Central Processing Department within an Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC). This position ensures that all surgical instruments, equipment, and supplies are appropriately decontaminated, inspected, assembled, sterilized, stored, and distributed in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements, infection prevention standards, manufacturer instructions for use (IFUs), and facility policies.

The Central Processing Manager is responsible for maintaining a culture of patient safety, quality, accountability, and continuous improvement. The Manager ensures departmental readiness for The Joint Commission accreditation and other applicable regulatory and accreditation surveys.

• Provide daily leadership, supervision, and direction to Central Processing staff.
• Establish staffing assignments, schedules, workflow priorities, and departmental coverage based on surgical volume and acuity.
• Ensure timely and accurate processing of instruments and equipment to support scheduled and emergent surgical procedures.
• Monitor departmental productivity, workflow, turnaround times, and staffing needs.
• Maintain appropriate inventory levels of sterile supplies, instruments, trays, and processing supplies.
• Collaborate closely with OR leadership, perioperative staff, Materials Management, Infection Prevention, and other departments to ensure uninterrupted surgical operations.
• Develop, implement, and maintain departmental policies and procedures.
• Ensure all cleaning, disinfection, inspection, assembly, packaging, sterilization, and storage processes are performed according to current standards and manufacturer IFUs.
• Ensure proper operation, monitoring, documentation, and maintenance of sterilization and high-level disinfection equipment.
• Verify appropriate use and documentation of biological indicators, chemical indicators, and other required sterilization monitoring processes.
• Ensure accurate sterilization load records and traceability from processing through patient use.
• Monitor sterile storage areas for appropriate environmental conditions, package integrity, expiration/event-related sterility requirements, and proper stock rotation.
• Immediately address sterilization failures, wet packs, compromised packaging, equipment failures, or other processing concerns according to established procedures.
• Partner with Infection Prevention to investigate and correct potential infection-control risks.

• Maintain departmental compliance with The Joint Commission , CMS, state health department requirements, OSHA, CDC guidance, and other applicable regulatory and professional standards.
• Maintain knowledge of current AAMI standards and recommended practices applicable to sterile processing.
• Ensure staff follow manufacturer IFUs and that current IFUs are readily accessible and incorporated into departmental processes.
• Prepare the department for accreditation and regulatory surveys and participate in mock surveys and readiness activities.
• Maintain required documentation, logs, competencies, quality records, and performance-monitoring data.
• Maintain a state of continuous survey readiness.

• Establish and monitor Central Processing quality indicators and departmental performance metrics.
• Conduct routine audits of cleaning, assembly, sterilization, storage, documentation, and quality-control processes.
• Track and trend errors, tray discrepancies, sterilization events, damaged instruments, missing instruments, and other quality indicators.
• Lead or participate in Performance Improvement/Quality Improvement initiatives.
• Identify opportunities to improve patient safety, workflow efficiency, instrument availability, and cost effectiveness.
• Report significant quality, safety, or compliance concerns to appropriate leadership.

• Oversee preventive maintenance and repair of sterilizers, washers, ultrasonic cleaners, heat sealers, and other Central Processing equipment.
• Coordinate with vendors and Biomedical/Facilities personnel regarding equipment maintenance and service.
• Monitor instrument condition and coordinate repair or replacement of damaged or obsolete instruments.
• Work with OR staff and vendors to evaluate instrument needs and standardize surgical trays when appropriate.
• Ensure loaner instrumentation is appropriately received, inspected, processed, sterilized, and returned according to policy and manufacturer requirements.

• Maintain accurate departmental records, including sterilization logs, biological monitoring results, equipment records, quality audits, competency records, and other required documentation.
• Communicate promptly with surgical leadership regarding instrument shortages, processing delays, equipment failures, sterilization concerns, or other operational issues.
• Participate in perioperative leadership…