As the medical device industry continues to speak the new mantra of "Patient Outcomes", device safety and sterility has become an enhanced topic of discussion. In this episode, our guest Michael Matthews of the Beyond Clean Podcast speaks on issues that must be addressed in the SPD departments in order to assure the safe and sterile delivery of surgical instruments to the OR. The interplay of People, Processes and Products must be understood to better manage the complicated work environment in the SPD.
Guest Description:
Michael Matthews, MBA, CLSSGB, CRCST, CIS, CHL currently serves as the Director for Clinical Education and Training for Northfield Medical, where he previously served as a Territory Manager for the Little Rock, Arkansas area, and a Clinical Education Manager for the southeast region. Before working at Northfield, Michael served as the manager for sterile processing at Baptist-Health Medical Center-Conway, a new $200 million facility in Arkansas.
During this time Michael also served as an Infection Preventionist on a PRN basis to consult on reprocessing services throughout the Baptist-Health system. Michael has previously served as a Sterile Processing Technician at Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s Healthcare (Catholic Health Initiatives) (2012-2013), Baptist East Hospital (2011-2012), both in Louisville, KY, and system manager for sterilization and high-level disinfection at Conway Regional Medical Center (2013-2016).
He holds three International Association of Healthcare Central Service Materiel Management (IAHCSMM) certifications for sterile processing. Michael has also served as a subject matter expert and participated in exam development for IAHCSMM. Michael holds an MBA and has also been certified as a Lean Six Sigma Greenbelt. He has published articles in Infection Control Today, Becker’s Hospital Review, Healthcare Purchasing News, as well as several LinkedIn articles in the sterile processing community.
Michael is a co-host of the Beyond Clean podcast, the premier podcast for sterile processing professionals throughout the world, and the lead host for Beyond the Headlines, which examines news related to the medical device reprocessing industry.