sterile processing
sterile processing
By Debra Sams, BA, AST, CRCST
In SPD Education, Remember ESL Learners
Educators must strive to tap every student’ s strengths and encourage active participation, teamwork, comprehension and retention, all while honoring each student’ s unique qualities and backgrounds.”
High-quality care, service and positive patient outcomes hinge on healthcare employees’ understanding and implementation of policies and procedures, best practices, instructions for use, current standards and guidelines, and more. To facilitate consistent, effective knowledge growth across all employees, sterile processing( SP) educators must be adept at teaching English as a second language( ESL) students in their classrooms and tailoring educational methods to help all students grasp the content and succeed in their new roles.
Every student, regardless of their background and native language, brings valuable and unique experiences to the departments they will serve. Because everyone learns and contributes in their own unique way, educators must learn to adapt and apply teaching methods to benefit all students, while also incorporating each person’ s strengths into their learning process whenever possible. Academic Joy M. Reid identified six learning styles— visual, tactile, auditory, group, kinesthetic and individual— and educators should understand those styles and tailor their curriculum to accommodate various learners.
Many ESL students struggle to adapt to the English-language classroom, and this can be especially so given the intensely technical SP-related content. SP education covers many topics; therefore, the curriculum must be presented in a way that makes it simpler for all students to comprehend, all while still communicating essential details so each staff member can function effectively in the department. Students with limited experience with the English language may lack confidence in their new roles, making them afraid to speak out, even when they know the correct answer. This type of isolation can further affect their learning and practical application of the content being taught. They may also fear making a mistake and embarrassing themselves in front of their classmates, and in some instances, come from a culture that promotes passive participation instead of active engagement. Given these challenges, educators must understand and address such barriers to ensure students are given the opportunity to learn in meaningful ways and successfully integrate within the classroom and department.
Successful integration of ESL students requires educators to provide an inclusive classroom that eases them into a well-constructed, thoughtful learning platform. A practical approach is incorporating visual aids that highlight diverse people and cultures and providing hands-on material to help ensure a sense of belonging for all learners. Educators can also consider adding photos of people of different cultures, genders and countries as well as posting posters and using other resources that translate key English words into students’ native languages. Bilingual glossaries with commonly used words or phrases, for example, can help students better grasp usage, aiding in their understanding and retention of the material being taught.
Additionally, visual aids can help all visual learners conceptualize content. For ESL students in particular, educators can group words by themes or topics to help students learn essential vocabulary relevant to specific settings, such as images of different types of equipment identified in English and other native languages. Creating posterboards with phonetics transcriptions can also help students with correct pronunciation of myriad items and concepts within the department. The purpose is to ensure every student feels supported, respected, accepted and appreciated— all of which will help them become more confident to participate in engaged learning. Peer-to-peer mentorship, tutoring and group work can further enhance communication and learning and create a sense of belonging. Whenever possible, educators should partner ESL students with more experienced peers who speak the same language or come from similar backgrounds and cultures.
Educators may further support ESL students by adopting translating technologies, such as handheld translators, and ensuring students have WiFi access to go online and obtain translations for words they don’ t understand. Note: If the school or facility invests in portable translators, ensure they provide good sound quality, support different languages and provide accurate translations. Last but not least, educators can allow ESL students to occasionally teach their classmates in their native language and then ask the students to explain what was taught. Taking tours of the facility to point out equipment and instruments in both English and ESL students’ native language and being sure to enunciate clearly and speak slowly enough to encourage greater understanding are also beneficial approaches.
ESL students are valuable additions to the classroom and SPD and deserve focused, innovative teaching methods to facilitate understanding and engagement and promote confidence in the material and its real-life application. Educators must strive to tap every student’ s strengths and encourage active participation, teamwork, comprehension and retention, all while honoring each student’ s unique qualities and backgrounds. When this happens, not only will the department benefit but also the healthcare customers it serves.
Debra Sams, BA, AST, CRCST, is a sterile processing educator at Cedars-Sinai.
26 • www. healthcarehygienemagazine. com • mar-apr 2025