Professional Knowledge and Skills
What this domain tests
Professional knowledge covers the rules and systems around the technical work: regulations and standards, worker safety, quality control and improvement, and inventory management. Expect questions that connect a task to the agency or standard behind it.
Regulations and standards
- AAMI standards frame practice: ST79 for steam sterilization, ST58 for EO, ST91 for flexible endoscopes, and ST77 for immediate-use sterilization. ISO 11607 covers packaging; ISO 11140 covers chemical indicators.
- OSHA enforces bloodborne pathogens (29 CFR 1910.1030), hazard communication and SDS (1910.1200), and sharps safety. CDC provides infection prevention guidance; FDA regulates devices and sterilants; CMS and The Joint Commission survey compliance.
- Know your facility's exposure control plan, spill response, and recall policy; these are survey targets.
Safety and quality
- Report exposures immediately: wash the area, report, get medical evaluation, and document. Confidentiality applies.
- Use quality indicators, audits, and documentation to find drift before it becomes a failure. A corrective action plan needs a root cause, an action, a responsible person, and a recheck.
- A recall uses load and lot records to locate every affected item. Quarantine first, then notify.
Inventory management
- Par levels set the minimum on hand; reorder points trigger purchase. ABC analysis focuses attention on high-value or high-use items. Consignment stock belongs to the vendor until used.
- Rotate stock FIFO, perform cycle counts, and reconcile backorders against case needs.
- Preference cards drive case carts; inaccurate cards cause extra opens, delays, and waste.
Worked example
A decon tech sustains a needlestick from a contaminated instrument. Reasoning: wash with soap and water, flush, report to the supervisor immediately, and go for medical evaluation under the exposure control plan. The source patient is evaluated with consent and confidentiality; the incident is documented, and the sharps container and instrument handling process are reviewed. The fix is a process change, such as a hands-free tray and no recapping, not blame.
Traps that cost marks
- Citing a standard without knowing what it covers, such as using ST79 for EO.
- Treating a near miss as nothing to report.
- Setting par levels from memory rather than usage data.
- Letting consignment stock sit unrecorded.
- Skipping the recheck after a corrective action.