Job Description

Surgical technologists (also known as scrubs or surgical techs) are those people you see in operating rooms working alongside surgeons, nurses, and anesthesiologists. They provide all of these professionals with any kind of assistance that they need, such as handing them surgical tools needed to complete the surgery, or helping them into their surgical attire. They prepare the operating room for surgery, including setting out all of the tools. They keep a record of all of the tools before, during, and after the surgery to make sure that there are no tools missing, and they also take care of them. In addition to preparing the room, they also prepare the patient for surgery by shaving any hair from the surgical site and transporting them to and from the operating room.

Average Salary

Now, scrubs aren’t exactly rolling in the dough like surgeons and nurses, but they do make a relatively good income. This is because the education required to be one isn’t as high as these other occupations. The average surgery technologist’s salary is around $36,000. There are several factors that affect salary though, such as experience and geographic location.

Experience

The longer a surgical tech has been in the field, the more money he will get paid. Experience creates a greater need in the operating room; a person with more experience is less likely to make a mistake that could cost the patient her life. This surgical tech has been exposed to various surgeries over the years and has had to deal with several problems that may have arisen during surgery and would therefore know how to handle them better than a new person.

Location

In addition to experience, geographic location plays a significant role in how much money a surgery technologist makes. In bigger cities with a high cost of living, they get paid more to be able to afford to live in such an expensive city.

No matter where a surgical tech works, he will be making around the same salary. This refers to the type of facility, like a hospital or a dentist’s office. There is not a large difference between the two (on average, $35,850 in hospitals and $34,160 in dentist offices), so when looking for a job, be sure to choose the type of surgeries you will feel more comfortable with watching.

Surgical technologists have very important job in operating rooms; they work alongside surgeons, nurses, and anesthesiologists to provide patients with the most efficient surgery. They provide the aforementioned professionals with any type of assistance that is needed, from handing them surgical equipment to prepping the patient for surgery. They have a lot of job duties to uphold, and need to have surgical technologist certification in order to perform their job duties. We have provided 4 quick tips on how to become surgical technologist certified.

1) Check Your Local Hospitals

Certification is required for all surgical technologists to have, and many hospitals offer certification and training. You should contact your local hospital and find out if they participate in this, and if they’re hiring surgical technologists at all. Otherwise, you will need to find a certified surgical tech school and apply for the program, and then consider applying at another hospital.

2) Training Program

Unlike most other healthcare occupations, becoming a surgical technologist does not require having a full-fledged college degree; it only requires going through training. During this training, you will learn everything that is necessary to passing the certification exam. You will take courses that will allow you to learn all of the proper names and purposes of surgical equipment, as well as other courses.

3) Internship

Once this training is complete (in about a year or two depending on the program), then you must carry out an internship which will place you in a real hospital setting. You will be present during certain surgeries and gain hands-on experience that is necessary to have before being able to exit the program.

4) Certification Exam

When you have completed the program, then you take an exam to be certified. The exam is given by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgery Assisting. You will use everything you have learned from your training and internship to pass the exam. Once it is passed, then you have become a certified surgical technologist, and you will be able to practice in any hospital or private office in the United States.

On just about every medical drama and show/movie where somebody gets surgery, you always see several people around the surgery patient. You know that there’s a surgeon, probably a couple nurses, but who are those other scrubbed up people in the mix? These people are surgical technologists, also known as scrubs.

Job Duties

A surgical technologist’s job description is essentially doing anything that a surgeon, nurse, or anesthesiologist asks for them to do. They work underneath all of these professionals, and therefore must may rapt attention to what they are doing and asking for so that the surgery can go as smoothly as possible. One of surgical techs main tasks is to help these professionals sanitize their hands and help them with surgical attire.

Scrubs don’t just do anything that others tell them to, they have specific tasks that they are in charge of. They prepare the operating room for surgery, including setting out and sanitizing all equipment that is going to be used during the surgery. They also keep a track of all surgical equipment during the procedure, and proceed to collect/count/take care of the equipment once the procedure is over. In addition to helping surgeons prepare for surgery, they help the patient prepare as well. This task includes shaving any hair off of the surgery site as well as transporting the patient to and from the operating room.

Working Environment

Surgical technologists work in medical facilities where there is surgery performed. This includes hospitals, emergency rooms, and specialty doctor’s offices. They often work long and strenuous hours, and they are sometimes kept on-call for emergency surgeries. There are 5 surgical techs that are present during each surgery, and each one has a different job task, depending on what the lead surgeon asks them to do.

Necessary Job Skills

Due to being exposed to open bodies and tons of blood, surgical technologists need to have a strong stomach and not be afraid to see blood or body parts being dissected. They also need to be able to stand for multiple hours, and not be distracted by anything. Being in surgery requires their full attention, and they also need to be sure that they pay attention to all of the surroundings. This is because they need to be able to catch a potential mistake that could be detrimental to the surgery and the patient.

If you’ve ever flipped on the TV and seen a movie or show with a whole bunch of people in an operating room about to slice a guy open, you’ve seen a surgical technologist or two. They’re not the ones who are cutting open the poor guy on the table; they’re the ones who are handling the surgical materials and handing the surgeons and nurses anything that they need.

Affectionately known as scrubs or operating room technicians, surgical technologists work in surgery rooms and assist surgeons and nurses with anything that they may need during the operation. This includes anything from handing them the different tools, to prepping them for surgery by helping to put on surgery attire. Surgery rooms are filled with anesthesiologists (those people who give you some quick puffs of laughing gas to knock you out before surgery), surgeons (the ones who slice you open), and nurses (the ones who assist in slicing you up).

In addition to helping all of the personnel, scrubs are also responsible for prepping the room prior to the surgery. This includes setting up equipment and supplies, and sterilizing solutions and drapes. After surgery, they collect the materials and count them. They, along with nurses, are responsible for counting the supplies before, during and after the surgery. This is so that nothing gets left behind in a patient; it’s a lawsuit waiting to happen if they don’t keep a track of all of the materials being used.

Surgical technologists also prep the patient before surgery. This includes shaving the hair off of the surgery site, or moving the patient to and from the operating room. They also hand the surgeons medical records for the patient. They work under all surgical staff, and therefore do just about anything that they are told.