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An illustrated woman holding a sign about opening a pair of scissors with the caption "Tiny Tech Tip: Open It Up". The infographic presents tiny tech tips with small descriptions, including connecting the lumen, stopping nesting, and understanding that memory is not an IFU. The workspace has pens, a mug, books, and plants, with messages about process improvement and safety.

Tiny Tech Tips

Small Lessons. Big Process Impact.

Quick sterile processing reminders for the things that are easy to overlook - and important enough not to.

From cleaning and inspection to packaging, sterilization, storage, and exam strategy, each Tiny Tech Tip turns one practical SPD concept into something you can understand in about a minute.

BROWSE THE TIPS ↓

Free to learn. Free to share with your team. Built for better processing.

Quick Learning

One Concept. One Minute. One Thing Worth Remembering.

Tiny Tech Tips take the little details of sterile processing and make them easier to understand, remember, and apply.

Each tip focuses on a practical idea:

SEE IT
A visual that makes the concept stick.

GET IT
A short explanation of why it matters.

USE IT
A takeaway you can carry back into the work.

No 47-Slide In-Service Required.

Explore the tips

Cleaning + Decontamination

Cartoon illustration of a metal sink and drain with anthropomorphized characters: a dishwasher with an angry face and a small trigger character with a worried expression, both squirting water at each other. Text emphasizes that washers cannot spray through metal and should load smart. Bright colors and educational message for children.
A cartoon illustration of a sad, anthropomorphic pipe holding a sign that says "Connect me" with a pink heart. The pipe has teary eyes and pink cheeks, appearing emotional. The background contains a message about connecting lumens to irrigation ports for mechanical cleaning, with pink and navy text emphasizing the tips.
Educational graphic illustrating that flushing a toilet is not the same as brushing teeth. Features cartoon characters of a syringe and a toothbrush, both smiling and giving thumbs up. The syringe character says 'I move stuff,' and the toothbrush character says 'I scrub stuff.' The graphic emphasizes that flushing moves cleaning solution through a lumen, while brushing provides mechanical action. It includes a visual of flushing and brushing actions with a cross mark between them. The bottom shows the phrase 'Flushing ≠ Brushing' and the logo 'riel/PROCESS'.

Inspection + Assembly

An illustrated open pair of scissors with an angry facial expression and a speech bubble saying, 'You think you know what's in here?' The image promotes a tip about cleaning closed instruments, featuring bold text that says, 'Tiny Tech Tips: Closed Instruments Have Secrets.' A pink checkmark indicates instructions for opening hinged instruments for cleaning.
An illustrated infographic showing two cartoon eyes with excessive blood vessels, holding magnifying glasses, examining a cleaning cloth. Accompanying text emphasizes the importance of objective verification in cleaning processes, with a small icon of a clipboard and test tube. The cartoon eyes say, '…You gonna use me or?'. A vertical device labeled 'Cleaning Verification Test' displays a meter with different color zones, indicating testing or verification steps.
A cartoon illustration of two characters, a girl with a flashlight and a robot with a head resembling a monitor, examining a dark, narrow alley with signs reading 'Bioburden Hides Here' and 'Residue Alley.' The text reads, 'If you can't see it, investigate it.' The girl says, 'I can't see much in there,' and the robot offers help. The image emphasizes the importance of enhanced inspection techniques for internal, difficult-to-see areas in medical device sterilization.

Packaging + Sterilization

An illustration of a washing machine character wearing a wizard hat, holding a magic wand, with a speech bubble saying, 'I can't fix what happened before it got here.' The image emphasizes the importance of proper preparation and handling in sterilizer processes, with tips listed including correct preparation, proper packaging, appropriate loading, correct cycle selection, monitoring, and careful handling and storage.
An educational infographic illustrating that gravity cycle and pre-vacuum cycle are not interchangeable in sterilization. Features two cartoon washing machines with faces; one with a happy expression labeled 'Gravity Cycle' for unwrapped solid instruments, and the other with an angry expression labeled 'Pre-Vacuum Cycle' for all load types including wrapped items. Contains signs with instructions about the proper use of each cycle and a reminder to verify cycles before processing.
An illustration showing a folded package labeled 'instrument tray' with a small girl peeking out from a tear in the packaging, accompanied by a magnifying glass emphasizing her face. The text reads, 'A tiny tear is still a tear,' with a note about package integrity and a pink heart logo at the bottom.

Storage & Handling

Illustration of a storage shelf with cartoon ice packs showing emotions and speech bubbles about not squeezing, needing space, and avoiding crushing. Instructions on avoiding damage to sterile packages are highlighted, emphasizing giving space for airflow and protecting package integrity during storage.
An animated illustration showing a healthcare worker struggling to push a large, wrapped medical instrument labeled 'General Surgery Set' into a shelf. The instrument looks upset, and the worker is sweating and appears frustrated. Another smaller instrument box labeled 'Ortho Tray' also looks distressed, with a worried expression and tears. A speech bubble from the large instrument says, 'IT DOESN'T FIT.' The image emphasizes not forcing medical equipment into place to prevent damage, tears, or compromised seals, with tips about proper packaging and fit.
A cartoon illustration of a warehouse scene with anthropomorphized sterile medical packaging characters. One character is sitting and says "And?" while another is sitting on the floor, appearing sad and saying "THAT, however, is a problem." A calendar with months is shown, with the note "YOU'RE OLD." A cardboard box is falling, illustrating a package mishap. The poster emphasizes the importance of watching the entire package for safety, not just checking the expiration date.

Quality + IFU

An educational illustration emphasizing that memory is not an I.F.U., featuring animated characters: a brain with glasses and a graduation cap on top of books, a robot holding a checklist of instructions for device use, and a healthcare worker in scrubs. The image includes various signs and a clipboard with guidelines for verifying instructions and device safety, highlighting the importance of verification rather than memorization.
The image is an infographic titled 'Tiny Tech Tips' showing a humorous illustration of a female healthcare worker overwhelmed by a medical record. The infographic emphasizes the importance of complete and accurate documentation in investigations, highlighting that vague notes are unhelpful. One healthcare worker is smiling and giving a thumbs-up, while another is distressed, holding her head. Around, there are labels such as 'Present-Day Tech', 'Future You', and various storage compartments depicted as signs. The infographic aims to teach about the importance of thorough documentation in medical settings.
An infographic emphasizing that passing a sterilization process does not mean the process is error-free. It features cartoon characters with documents showing test results, such as clean sterilizer reports marked 'PASS' and error notices like 'FAIL.' The infographic warns that one result does not indicate the entire process is successful and highlights common issues like wrong monitor placement and incomplete documentation.

Code Breaker

An educational infographic titled 'Tiny Tech Tips' with advice on answering certification questions honestly. It shows a worried student labeled 'SPD STUDENT' and a confident educator labeled 'SPD EDUCATOR.' The student is thinking about chaotic scenarios involving a fire alarm, error messages, power outages, and other issues, with a thought bubble saying, 'But what if?' The educator reminds to stick to included information and avoid inventing circumstances. The infographic emphasizes answering questions based on given facts, not assumptions, with a takeaway to answer questions based on what was provided.
An illustrated infographic showing a running race with animated characters representing different options and a person holding a clipboard with a question. It emphasizes that the first action should be done first before others, highlighting the importance of prioritizing steps in a process.
Colorful educational poster explaining that the best answer is not always the technically correct or most reasonable one, but the strongest answer. Features cartoon children in blue hats and a girl wearing a crown and sash labeled 'Best'. Emphasizes that good answers differ from the best, and encourages choosing the strongest answer.

Learn it. Share it. Talk about it.

Tiny Tech Tips work wherever a quick reminder can start a useful conversation.

You might:

  • review one during a shift huddle

  • share one with a learner or preceptor

  • use one to reinforce a recent training topic

  • revisit one when a process question comes up

  • use one as a quick certification study reminder

The tip is small. The conversation doesn’t have to be.

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Need a quick reminder?

TINY TECH TIPS
One concept in about a minute.

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THE 5-MINUTE HUDDLE
One concept + one discussion + one takeaway

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More Tiny. More Tech. More Tips.

New Tiny Tech Tips will be added as the library grows.

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