Surgical technologist

A Surgical Technologist is an allied health professional in the United States, part of the operating room team, also called scrubs or operating room technicians. Surgical technologists assist with surgical operations, as well as pass instruments to the surgeon. All surgical technologists work primarily under the supervision of the Registered Nurse and attending surgeon. A small percentage of all surgical technologists in the US, are certified (CST or Surgical Technologist,Certified). NBSTSA Statistics for 2005 Certificants:

Certified Surgical Technologists and Certified First Assistants

According to the US Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics 2004-2005 Occupational Outlook Handbook, there were approximately 72,000 surgical technologist jobs in the United States in 2002. The median annual income of these individuals in 2002 was $31,310, with the median 50% earning $26,000 to $36,740 annually. Because of the increased number of expected surgeries, the number of jobs in surgical technology is expected to grow faster than average through 2012.

NBSTSA and the Association of Surgical Technologists report that there are currently 24,000 Certified Surgical Technologists (CSTs) actively employed in the field. This number includes 250-500 certificants with currency that were certified before 1977, and granted certification for life through Board action.

Percentage of CSTs in the field: 33%

2005 Statistics

In 2005, 3,762 candidates attempted the NBSTSA’s national certification exam for surgical technologists. Of these, 2,475 passed and 1,287 failed. Pass rate: 66%

In 2005, 269 candidates attempted the NBSTSA’s national certification exam for surgical first assistants. Of these, 137 passed and 132 failed. Pass rate: 51%

Responsibilities
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
 * Preparing surgical instruments before procedures
 * Keeping count of surgical instruments with the registered nurse or circulator.
 * Monitoring all members of the surgical team in order to maintain a sterile field during each procedure.
 * Safe transportation of patients to and from the operating room.
 * Passing instruments and retracting tissues to help visualize the area of the patient where surgeons and surgical assistants are working.
 * Operation of suction machines, diagnostic equipment and sterilizing  equipment
 * Learning operation of new instrumentation dependent upon specialty (i.e. orthopedics, gynecology, cosmetics etc.)

Surgical Technologist: Workplace

 * Operating rooms in hospitals.
 * Central Sterile Processing in hospitals
 * Dental and orthodontic offices
 * Private surgical facilities
 * Experienced surgical technologists may return to teach future technologists.

Surgical Technologist: Training
According to the Association of Surgical Technologists, in the near future many employers, will prefer to hire graduates from 2-year associate's degree programs that have been accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP). Shorter, 1 year programs lead to certificates or diplomas, but these may limit future employment options.

Surgical technicians/technologists receive their training in formal programs offered by junior colleges, vocational schools, Universities, very few hospitals, and the military.

Surgical technologist students receive a combination of academic and hands-on education. Programs include courses in anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, medical terminology, microbiology,surgical instrumentation and sterilization techniques to prepare equipment for operations.

Students can receive certification by completing a CAAHEP-accredited program and passing the national certification exam. Students who obtain certification are known as Certified Surgical Technologists (CST), and must renew their certification after 4 years by The National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA). However, NCCT may also certify surgical technologist and are known as surgical technologist certified, which require a shorter renewal time. The main requirement for NCCT schools is that the school of instruction in recognized by the United States Department of Education, this is not the case with all AST schools. If the school is not accredited and recognized credits may not transfer to an institution of higher education.

Surgical Technologists with the NCCT certification are nationally certified just like the AST certification and some hospitals are enjoying this certification as they can test employees on site.

Most military techs are not able to sit for the CST certification as they do not recognize many of the military training programs but most can sit for the NCCT exam if they can prove training and experience in the field.

Salary
According to the American Medical Association, Certified Surgical Technologists make, on average, an annual salary of $37,967. This varies according to specialty, geographic location, experience, and certification status. In the USA, certified Surgical Technologists can earn as much as $10,000 more per annum than their non-certified co-workers.

Job opportunities are expected to be favorable
Employment of surgical technologists, is expected to grow much faster than average for all occupations through the year 2014 as the volume of surgery increases. Job opportunities are expected to be good. The number of surgical procedures is expected to rise as the population grows and ages.

History of the Surgical Technologist
The role of the Surgical Technologist began on the battlefields in World War I and World War II when the Army used corpsmen to work under the direct supervision of the Surgeon on combat ships. Nurses were not allowed on combat ships at the time, so a new profession was born which the Army called Operating Room Technicians (ORTs).

After the Korean War there were shortages of operating room nurses. Operating room supervisors began to recruit ex-corpsmen to work in civilian surgery. These ex-corpsmen functioned as the circulator in the operating room while the scrub role or “instrument nurse” role was performed by the Registered nurse. It wasn’t until 1965 until these roles were reversed.

In 1967 the Association of Operating Room Nurses (AORN) published a book titled Teaching the Operating Room Technician. In 1968 the AORN Board of Directors created the Association of Operation Room Technicians (AORT). The AORT formed two committees in 1969, The Liaison Council on Certification for the Surgical Technologist (LCC-ST) and the Joint Committee on Education. The first certification examination was given in 1970, and those that passed the certification examination were given a new title: Certified Operating Room Technician (CORT).

In 1973 AORT became independent of AORN and changed the title of the position to what it is today, Surgical Technologist. The AORT also changed their name to the Association of Surgical Technologists (AST). In 1974 an accreditation body was needed to ensure quality education of the ORT. AST has worked diligently since 1973 to promote excellence in our profession. Today Surgical Technologists taking and passing the national certification examination earn the title of Certified Surgical Technologist (CST).