Surgical Technologists
Health Science > Therapeutic ServicesProjected Growth: Faster than average
Projected Job Openings
Medium Preparation Needed
Job Description
Your job is to Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons, registered nurses, or other surgical personnel. May help set up operating room, prepare and transport patients for surgery, adjust lights and equipment, pass instruments and other supplies to surgeons and surgeon’s assistants, hold retractors, cut sutures, and help count sponges, needles, supplies, and instruments.
Common job titles of Surgical Technologists include:
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Experience and Education
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
40.56% said they needed a Associate's Degree.
31.22% said they needed a Post-Secondary Certificate.
Tasks
Prepare, care for, and dispose of tissue specimens taken for laboratory analysis.
Monitor and continually assess operating room conditions, including patient and surgical team needs.
Prepare dressings or bandages and apply or assist with their application following surgery.
Order surgical supplies.
Prepare patients for surgery, including positioning patients on the operating table and covering them with sterile surgical drapes to prevent exposure.
Operate, assemble, adjust, or monitor sterilizers, lights, suction machines, or diagnostic equipment to ensure proper operation.
Provide technical assistance to surgeons, surgical nurses, or anesthesiologists.
Maintain a proper sterile field during surgical procedures.
Hand instruments and supplies to surgeons and surgeons' assistants, hold retractors and cut sutures, and perform other tasks as directed by surgeon during operation.
Scrub arms and hands and assist the surgical team to scrub and put on gloves, masks, and surgical clothing.
Clean and restock operating room, gathering and placing equipment and supplies and arranging instruments according to instructions, such as a preference card.
Wash and sterilize equipment, using germicides and sterilizers.
Count sponges, needles, and instruments before and after operation.
Observe patients' vital signs to assess physical condition.
Maintain supply of fluids, such as plasma, saline, blood, or glucose, for use during operations.
Maintain files and records of surgical procedures.
Tools
X ray machines
Wound drains
Wheelchairs
Washer sterilizers
Washer sanitizers
Warm air blankets
Voice activated surgical systems
All ToolsVideo cassette recorders VCR
Venodynes
Vacuum extractors
Ultrasonic cleaners
Tracheostomy tubes
Tourniquets
Thermal cautery units
Tablet computers
Syringes
Suturing needle forceps
Suturing kits
Suture needles
Surgical tubing or irrigation tubing
Surgical stapling equipment
Surgical robots
Surgical robotics equipment
Surgical retractors
Surgical probes
Surgical pneumatic drills
Surgical navigation systems
Surgical lasers
Surgical forceps
Surgical elevators
Surgical drills
Surgical drapes
Surgical drains
Surgical dissectors
Surgical dilators
Surgical clamps
Surgical aspirators
Suction machines
Stretchers
Sternal saws
Steri-vac aeration cabinets
Sterad machines
Spark-gap electrosurgical units
Smoke evacuators
Slow suction units
Skin staplers
Scalpels
Robotic manipulators
Robotic arms
Ring stands
Retractors
Remote manipulation robots
Pulmonary resuscitators
Positioning equipment
Portable suction units
Pneumatic tourniquets
Personal computers
Orthopedic drills
Orthopedic arm boards with drains
Ohio suction units
Notebook computers
Neurotome drills
Nerve stimulators
Neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet Nd:YAG lasers
Needle holders
Motorized lift tables
Minidriver drills
Microscopes
Medical imagining laser printers
Medical image database systems
Mayo stands
Master control units or manipulators
Manual blood pressure units
Loupes
Lithotripters
Linear staplers
Laparoscopes
Lab specimen containers
Kleinert-Kutz elevators
Intraluminal staplers
Intestinal stapling devices
Internal mammary artery IMA retractors
Insufflators
Instrument tables
Instrument positioning equipment
Hyper/hypothermia units
Hemorrhoidal circular staplers
Graspers
Fracture tables
Foot-operated suction units
Fluoroscopy equipment
Flash autoclaves
Fiber optic luminators
Eye magnets
Eye lasers
Ethylene Oxide sterilizers
Endoscopy equipment
Endoscopic vein harvesting equipment
Endoscopic camera/video systems
Electrosurgical units
Electrosurgical monitors
Electrosurgical grounding pads
Electronic blood pressure cuffs
Electrocautery equipment
Doppler ultrasound equipment
Digital Imaging Communications in Medicine DICOM diagnostic medical printers
Digital electrosurgical units
Desktop computers
Dermatomes
Dermatome blades
Defibrillators
Cryo-ophthalmic units
Cryo units
Craniotome drills
Coronary bypass pumps
Continuous suction machines
Cholangiocath catheters
Chest drains
Central venous catheters
Cell savers
Cavitrons
Cardiovascular stents
Cardiac leg wedges
Carbon dioxide CO2 lasers
Blood/fluid warmers
Autotransfusion systems
Autologous blood recovery systems
Autoclaves
Argon beam coagulators
Anesthesia machines
Air driver drills
Adjustable height instrument tables
Technologies
MEDITECH software
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Windows
Electronic medical record EMR software
Email software
Graphics software
Internet browser software
All TechnologiesNursing documentation software
Patient scheduling software
Patient tracking software
Supply documentation software
Surgery workflow communication software
Word processing software
Skills
Monitoring
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Active Listening
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Operation Monitoring
Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Speaking
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Coordination
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Time Management
Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Reading Comprehension
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Active Learning
Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Learning Strategies
Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
Social Perceptiveness
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Instructing
Teaching others how to do something.
Service Orientation
Actively looking for ways to help people.
Complex Problem Solving
Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Operation and Control
Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Equipment Maintenance
Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Judgment and Decision Making
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Management of Material Resources
Obtaining and seeing to the appropriate use of equipment, facilities, and materials needed to do certain work.
Abilities
Listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Comprehension
See details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Sensory Abilities › Visual Abilities › Near Vision
Communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Cognitive Abilities › Verbal Abilities › Oral Expression