ConCensis

The sterile processing industry stands at a pivotal moment. With surgical case volumes rising while departmental resources remaining flat, the pressure to “do more with less” has never been greater. Nowadays, sterile processing departments (SPDs) are struggling with high staff turnover and growing compliance requirements. And while these regulations are designed to improve patient safety, the added workload—combined with frequent staff shortages—can overwhelm teams, slow efficiency, and increase the likelihood of errors that put patients at risk. Against this backdrop, the upcoming Censis Technologies User Conference (CtUC) 2025, themed “Elevating the Standard,” arrives as both a reflection of industry challenges and a rallying call for solutions.

So, what does “elevating the standard” look like in practice—and how can SPD leaders, technicians, and hospital partners rise to meet it?

Welcome to ConCensis. In this episode, host Daniel Litwin, the Voice of B2B at MarketScale, sits down with three key leaders from Censis Technologies—Amanda Birkhead, Vice President of Product & Marketing; Sheena Moore, President; and Desiré Smith, Implementation Manager—to preview CtUC 2025 and unpack how the conference will help reimagine workflows, empower teams, and strengthen the SPD community at large.

The main points of conversation…

Training, empowerment, and connection: CtUC 2025 (being held virtually from September 8-10) is designed to equip SPD professionals with insights from industry experts, peers, and Censis leaders—fostering both education and community.

Technology for “more with less”: From advanced reporting analytics to new AI-powered co-pilot tools, Censis is unveiling innovations that simplify workflows, reduce risk, and support technicians at every skill level.

Community-driven impact: Beyond education, the conference emphasizes peer-to-peer collaboration, one-on-one engagement with Censis experts, and a ripple effect of shared best practices that can elevate the industry as a whole.

Amanda Birkhead is a senior marketing and product management executive with over 20 years of B2B experience spanning software, services, and industrial solutions. She has held leadership roles at Fortive, Honeywell, and Censis Technologies, where she has driven digital transformation, delivered innovative product roadmaps, and built high-performance teams. Known for translating customer insights into profitable growth strategies, she specializes in global market expansion, strategic organizational transformation, and cross-functional collaboration to achieve measurable business impact.

Sheena Moore is the President of Censis Technologies, bringing over 20 years of leadership experience across the healthcare, industrial, and manufacturing sectors. She has held senior roles at Fortive, Landauer, IDEX, and The Timken Company, where she led business transformations, operational optimization, and growth strategies. With a strong background in general management, sales, and customer-focused innovation, she is recognized for driving organizational performance and building high-impact teams in complex, global markets.

Desiré Smith serves as Implementation Manager, overseeing on-site training for Go Lives and helping clients tailor workflows for maximum efficiency. With years of experience in SPD operations and client success, she bridges technical expertise with hands-on support. She is known for working side-by-side with customers to troubleshoot challenges and ensure the smooth adoption of Censis solutions.

In a healthcare ecosystem increasingly driven by data, sterile processing departments (SPDs) find themselves at a crossroads—balancing precision and pace, safety and speed. As hospitals look to reduce inefficiencies and protect patient safety, analytics tools are transforming sterile processing from an often overlooked backroom function into a vital, data-enhanced frontline of care. Research shows that missing instruments in surgical trays can cause significant delays and financial losses—costing hospitals hundreds of thousands annually—underscoring the critical role of real-time analytics in preventing these inefficiencies.

So, how can frontline healthcare teams merge hard metrics with the soft skill of intuition to streamline operations, improve quality, and ensure safety? What role does data storytelling play in elevating sterile processing strategy?

Welcome to ConCensis. In the latest episode, host Daniel Litwin, the Voice of B2B at MarketScale, sits down with Beth Perry, Business Intelligence & Analytics Engineer at Censis Technologies, to explore how blending data and intuition is not only possible but necessary in modern SPD operations. The two discuss Perry’s unconventional path from journalism to healthcare analytics, and how narrative instincts can make raw numbers actionable.

Key Takeaways from the Episode…

Intuition Amplifies Metrics: Data analysis in SPDs mirrors journalism—asking the right questions, following patterns, and translating complexity into action. Beth highlights how technician intuition, like recognizing patterns in tray assembly speed, is vital for interpreting data trends.

A Dashboard is Only as Good as Its Story: Beth shares insights on building dashboards that reveal both current performance and actionable paths forward. Clear visualization of productivity, quality, and instrument tracking empowers staff to trust their instincts and take decisive action.

Human-Centric Analytics Lead to Real Impact: From reducing incomplete tray rates from 14% to 9% in one month to identifying training slowdowns, Beth emphasizes how visibility and ownership among SPD teams drive real performance gains.

Beth Perry is a seasoned business intelligence and analytics professional with over 15 years of experience developing data solutions across healthcare, logistics, and technology sectors. At Censis Technologies, she has held multiple analytics-focused roles, most recently serving as an Engineer in Business Intelligence & Analytics, where she helped innovate the company’s AI² platform for sterile processing departments. Known for her strong communication skills and ability to bridge technical insights with business needs, she has become a key driver of data-informed strategy and operational efficiency in healthcare settings.

When most people think of hospitals, their minds go straight to doctors, nurses, and lifesaving procedures. Rarely do they consider the intricate world behind the scenes—especially the sterile processing departments that ensure every surgical instrument is safe and accounted for. In an era where precision and speed can impact patient outcomes, advancements in surgical instrument tracking technology are transforming the way these essential departments operate. The integration of tools like CensiTrac has revolutionized everything from locating misplaced sets to managing loaned equipment with photo documentation, increasing both accountability and efficiency. For professionals tasked with training new technicians, intuitive software has also become an unexpected ally—turning complex processes into teachable, repeatable routines. But the real story isn’t just the technology; it’s about the people leveraging it to build smoother workflows, create faster turnaround times, and offer better care.

To hear from the frontline of this innovation, meet Sydney McWaters and Trey Sneed of Stillwater Medical Center, who share how ConCensis has reshaped their daily work in meaningful ways

At the Stillwater Medical Center in Oklahoma, Lead Central Sterile Technician Sydney McWaters and Certified Sterilization Technician Trey Sneed have experienced firsthand how CensiTrac, the surgical instrument and asset management solution from Censis, has transformed daily operations and helped their team adapt to change with confidence.

Recently, the department implemented location scanning through CensiTrac—a change that significantly improved turnaround times and made it easier to locate sets when they’re needed most. What was once a manual, time-consuming search has now become a quick lookup process, thanks to precise scan-to-location tracking.

In addition to scanning, the team has embraced CensiTrac’s loaner tray tracking and photo documentation features, allowing them to confirm instrument completeness and respond to discrepancies with clarity and confidence. This has proven especially useful when coordinating with external vendors or surgical teams.

Both McWaters and Sneed emphasize how approachable and responsive the Censis support team has been throughout their journey. As their department continues to evolve, CensiTrac remains a reliable, user-friendly foundation for improving accuracy, training, and efficiency.

At the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, Nursing Manager Josh Meyer has seen measurable benefits from implementing CensiTrac’s AI² functionality. The tool has become an integral part of how the department monitors quality, manages staffing, and improves daily operations.

With AI², the team is able to track key quality metrics across sterile processing workflows. From detecting sharp items improperly placed in containers to identifying holes in blue wraps or missing instruments in trays, every detail is logged and analyzed. This granular data helps ensure that only properly prepared and fully compliant instrument sets are sent to the operating room.

In addition to quality monitoring, the system provides valuable insights into staffing needs and productivity levels. Meyer and his team use this data to assess daily output and identify where staffing adjustments may be necessary to maintain performance standards.

By leveraging the technology, the sterile processing team has strengthened its operational visibility, improved accountability, and enhanced the overall quality of surgical support services.

In the intricate choreography of modern healthcare, sterile processing may not be the most visible performance—but it’s one of the most vital. Behind every successful surgery lies an army of professionals ensuring that every tool is flawlessly clean, complete, and ready for action. As hospitals face rising demands and tighter margins, the ability to track quality metrics and staffing productivity in real-time has become indispensable. Leveraging advanced technology like AI-powered analytics is no longer a luxury—it’s a necessity to safeguard patient outcomes and improve operational efficiency.

One leader who’s pioneering this evolution in sterile processing is Josh Meyer, Nurse Manager at Mayo Clinic Rochester, who shares how tools like ConCensis are reshaping the frontline of surgical readiness.

Brenda “Jan” Prudent, Sterile Processing Manager at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, has seen significant improvements in accountability, inventory management, and workflow efficiency since implementing CensiTrac, the leading cloud-based surgical instrument and asset management system from Censis.

Before adopting CensiTrac, her department used manual tracking methods that limited visibility and made it difficult to ensure consistency. Now, every stage of the process, from decontamination and assembly to sterilization and storage, is captured in real time, enabling the team to trace errors, maintain compliance, and reinforce best practices.

Prudent found the system especially valuable in analyzing tray utilization and productivity. With detailed reporting tools, the team can track how often trays are used and make data-driven decisions about whether new instruments are truly needed.

Today, CensiTrac plays a critical role in supporting safe, efficient, and well-informed sterile processing operations at the facility.

In the quiet hum of hospital backrooms, sterile processing departments serve as the guardians of patient safety—meticulously cleaning, assembling, and sterilizing surgical instruments. Yet for years, many of these departments operated in a fog of manual logs, handwritten checklists, and guesswork that left too much room for error. Today, the shift to digital tracking and automation is transforming sterile processing into a precision-driven science. With systems like ConCensis, every instrument's journey—from decontamination to storage—is logged and traceable, ensuring accountability and enabling swift quality control interventions. The data-rich environment also empowers managers with insights into tray usage, inventory optimization, and staff productivity—turning what was once reactive work into a strategic advantage. While digital adoption may be painful up front, as with many hospital tech transitions, the downstream benefits in safety, efficiency, and peace of mind are impossible to ignore.

For a firsthand account of this transformation, meet Brenda "Jan" Prudent, Sterile Processing Manager at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, who shares how technology has reshaped her department and why even the once-dreaded Decontam area is now embraced.

Behind every successful surgical procedure lies an invisible backbone—sterile processing. Often overlooked, this critical department ensures that every instrument is clean, traceable, and ready at a moment’s notice. As hospitals wrestle with efficiency, accountability, and staffing shortages, digital solutions like ConCensis are revolutionizing sterile workflows through real-time tracking and productivity tools. This isn’t just about logistics—it’s about empowering technicians with visibility and pride in their performance, transforming “just another task” into a data-driven mission.

One technician who embodies this shift is Chelissa Gray, a Sterile Processing Technician at St. Dominic Hospital in Jackson, MS—hear how ConCensis has changed her daily work, and why she wouldn’t go back.

Chelissa Gray, a Sterile Processing Technician at St. Dominic Hospital in Jackson, Mississippi, describes CensiTrac as an essential part of her daily workflow. With CensiTrac, Gray and her team can track every surgical instrument from the moment it arrives in decontamination to when it’s delivered back to the operating room, ensuring full visibility and accountability throughout the process.

One of the features she values most is real-time productivity tracking, which allows technicians to measure and improve their performance continuously. This capability helps staff not only stay on top of their tasks but also push for higher standards each day.

CensiTrac also helps reduce confusion between departments. When instruments are still in the OR or misplaced, the tracking system makes it easy to verify their location, helping eliminate blame and streamline communication between the OR and sterile processing.

For Gray, the message is simple: CensiTrac works—and it makes a measurable difference in day-to-day operations.