An apparatus and method for monitoring a cleaning process for a medical device. The apparatus comprises a soil detector. The soil detector is capable of detecting inorganic and/or organic soil on a medical device or in a liquid utilized in a cleaning or cleaning monitoring process or on a soil-covered standard which can serve as a surrogate indicator of cleanliness for the medical device. The method of the invention for monitoring a cleaning process for a medical device comprises the step of measuring the soil removed from a medical device with the apparatus of the invention comprising a soil detector. Preferably, the method further comprises the step of determining when the device is sufficiently cleaned so that it can be sterilized.