Celebrating our Central Sterile Supply Department (CSSD) team for Allied Health, Scientific & Technical Professions Day 2024

As Operations Manager of the Central Sterile Supply Department (CSSD), Margaret Bridge leads the team responsible for ensuring the sterility of all the equipment used in nearly every procedure - surgical and non-surgical - across our services.    

“As surgical services evolve, we need to keep up with major new complexities in sterilisation,” she says.   

“There are now a reduced number of instruments but the ones used are more complex, with more parts, requiring skill and expertise to take them apart and put them back together. 

It’s a little mind-boggling the complexity of what we work through each day – especially in the new age of robotic surgery, where very complicated equipment must be cleaned and reassembled. Not to mention the complexity of laparoscopic equipment where great care is taken with the high-tech electrical features of the gear.”  

CSSD has a team of more than fifty, and the workload is always expanding – with the recent opening of some new surgical facilities part of the increased demand.  

“The reality is, if our service doesn’t get it right, surgery and many other services for our patients can’t happen.”  

Margaret’s been with the department since 1997 and says her role in looking after the vast array of needs across both North Shore and Waitākere hospitals is one she finds hugely rewarding and expects to be in for a while yet.  

A big shout-out to the CSSD team who do incredible work behind-the-scenes, processing over two million reusable medical and surgical devices each year!