What is surgical technology

Students are also taught to work with sutures, instruments, and supplies in a non-patient contact environment. Successful completion of this course is required for clinical placement. During this course the correlation of theory with clinical practice begins, with lab reinforcement continuing as necessary. Classroom focus is on presentation of surgical procedures by specialty. In each specialty the following will be reinforced: relevant anatomy, pathological conditions, diagnostic procedures and tests, preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative procedural sequence, special instrumentation, equipment, supplies and drugs, and patient preparation in the OR.

Prerequisites: All first semester courses in the Surgical Technology Program. Topics include: professionalism, resume preparation, interviewing techniques, basic computer skills and the biomedical sciences such as robotics, physics and electricity. Through lecture, discussion, guest speakers and mock interviews, students will learn how to conduct themselves during the interview process, what potential employers are looking for and how to best present themselves.

Test taking strategies, review of material and the application process will be covered in this section. Students will have an opportunity to take a certification exam practice test to determine their strengths.

Clinical rotation continues during this course. Prerequisites: All first and second semester courses in the Surgical Technology Program. You might also be interested in Medical Laboratory Technician The MLT program consists of didactic and campus laboratory courses designed to progress the student through a two-year program. Psychomotor Domain: Practical application of words and abbreviations in operative reports and documentation is practiced and assessed in the laboratory classes and during clinical rotations.

Affective Domain: Students learn that the appropriate use of medical terminology promotes professionalism and identity as a member of the surgical team. Goal 3: Employ appropriate ethical, professional and respectful values while providing care to diverse populations within the healthcare system. Cognitive Domain: Students are introduced to the concepts of professionalism, ethics and values.

Knowledge regarding ethical issues forms the framework for safe and ethical practice. Promotion of the profession at the state and national level is emphasized throughout the program. Cultural competency concepts are reinforced throughout the program to provide students with the tools needed to practice culturally competent care.

Psychomotor Domain: Students practice and are assessed for their application of professional attributes in the classroom, laboratory and clinical rotations. Affective Domain: The concepts of professionalism are taught to guide student behavior in the profession of surgical technology.

These concepts are reinforced in every course throughout the program as they are fundamental to the profession. Psychomotor Domain: Students practice and are assessed for their application of surgical conscience and accountability in the classroom, laboratory and clinical rotations.

Legal concepts, such as charting and compliance with confidentiality, are also assessed in laboratory simulations and during clinical rotations. Affective Domain: The concepts of surgical conscience, accountability, and legal implications are taught to guide student behavior in the profession of surgical technology.

Goal 5: Integrate knowledge gained in core surgical technology courses to prepare for and assist with surgical interventions.

Knowledge gained is sequential, progressing from the simple to the complex, enabling students to evolve from simple comprehension of theoretical material to application of complex skills. Psychomotor Domain: During laboratory courses and clinical rotations, students progressively apply theoretical surgical technology concepts in the performance of surgical technology competencies.

Affective Domain: Knowledge gained in CBC SURG courses prepare students for the emotional challenges that may be encountered before, during and after surgical interventions. Goal 6: Utilize learned competencies to assemble and operate instruments, equipment, and supplies for the delivery of patient care as an entry-level practitioner during basic surgical procedures.

They must provide needed equipment quickly. Because they are trusted to provide sterile supplies and care for patients during surgical procedures, surgical technologists must be ethical and honest.

Listening skills. Responding to requests from surgeons and others on the surgical team requires the ability to listen to and understand spoken directions.

Physical stamina. Surgical technologists should be comfortable standing for extended periods. Stress-management skills. Working in an operating room can be stressful.

Surgical technologists should work well under pressure. Certification may be beneficial for finding a job. Surgical technologists may earn certification through credentialing organizations. All require documenting critical skills and passing an exam. Both certifications require surgical technologists to complete continuing education to maintain their certification.

A small number of states have regulations governing the work of surgical technologists or surgical first assistants, or both. Surgical technologists may choose to advance to other healthcare occupations, such as registered nurse. A technologist may also choose to become a postsecondary teacher of health specialties. Note: All Occupations includes all occupations in the U. Source: U. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less.

In May , the median annual wages for surgical technologists in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program. Advances in medical technology have made surgery safer, and more operations are being done to treat a variety of illnesses and injuries. In addition, the aging of the large baby-boom generation is expected to increase the need for surgical technologists because older people usually require more operations.

Moreover, as these individuals age, they may be more willing than those in previous generations to seek medical treatment to improve their quality of life.

For example, an individual may decide to have a knee replacement operation in order to maintain an active lifestyle or to have cataracts removed to improve vision. These estimates are available for the nation as a whole, for individual states, and for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas.

The link s below go to OEWS data maps for employment and wages by state and area. All state projections data are available at www. Information on this site allows projected employment growth for an occupation to be compared among states or to be compared within one state. CareerOneStop includes hundreds of occupational profiles with data available by state and metro area.

There are links in the left-hand side menu to compare occupational employment by state and occupational wages by local area or metro area. There is also a salary info tool to search for wages by zip code. This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of surgical technologists. Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians collect samples and perform tests to analyze body fluids, tissue, and other substances.

Medical assistants complete administrative and clinical tasks in hospitals, offices of physicians, and other healthcare facilities. Sterile fields can be compromised in a variety of ways, the most common of which is by introducing moisture. To prevent this, the surgical technologist is responsible for arranging dry drapes around the operating table and keeping all surfaces in a sterile condition.

At any time during an operation, if a tool is missing or contaminated, the delay or resulting infection could cost a patient his or her life. That is why surgical technologists must be diligent and thorough at all times. As the operation concludes, surgical techs are responsible for the following:. Certification can help a surgical technologist in finding the right position.