Summary of Position:

The Surgical Technician facilitates the operative or other invasive procedure by preparing and providing the required sterile instruments, supplies and equipment. Maintains the sterile field and anticipates and responds to the needs of the surgical team.

Qualifications

Education:

● High school diploma or GED required.

● Graduate from an accredited surgical technology program or equivalent education/experience

● Certified surgical technologist (CST) preferred

Experience:

● Minimum of six months previous OR experience preferred

● Orthopedic, specifically sports medicine, experience preferred

● Previous experience in reprocessing operations preferred

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

● Knowledge of or experience with Medical Terminology.

● Highly effective written and verbal communications skills.

● Proficient computer skills

● Requires critical thinking skills, decisive judgment and ability to work with minimal supervision.

● Must be able to work in a stressful environment and take appropriate action.

● In compliance with patient safety standards, must be able to effectively communicate in English; Bilingual abilities preferred

Certifications/Licensure:

● Current CPR/BLS certification by the American Heart Association (BLS for the Healthcare Provider) or ability to obtain prior to start date.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

 ● While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to walk, stand, sit, and talk or hear.

● The employee is occasionally required to use hands to finger, handle, feel or operate objects, tools, or controls; and reach with hands and arms.

● The employee is occasionally required to climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.

● Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, color vision, and the ability to adjust focus.

● Lifts, positions, pushes and/or transfer patients.

● The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.

Working Conditions

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

● Routine Hospital/Healthcare & Office/Administrative conditions.

● Contact with patients and guests under a wide variety of circumstances.

● Regularly exposed to the risk of bloodborne diseases.

● Exposure to infections and contagious disease.

● Exposed to hazardous anesthetic agents, body fluids and waste.

● Subject to hazards of flammable and explosive gases.

● Subject to varying and unpredictable situations, including the handling of emergency or crisis situations.

● Subject to pressure due to irregular hours, frequent interruptions and stressful situations due to multiple demands.

● Occasional travel to various health system locations.

Essential Functions

1. Provides consistently exceptional care at all times.

2. Functions as a scrub person during operative and other invasive procedures by

a. assembling supplies and equipment required for the procedure;

b. preparing and organizing sterile supplies and instruments for the procedure;

c. performs surgical counts according to departmental policy;

d. assisting with placement of sterile drapes;

e. providing instruments and supplies to the surgical team during the procedure;

f. maintaining an organized sterile field;

g. ensuring sterility of the field and taking corrective actions as needed; and

h. preparing sterile dressings.

3. Clean and prepare surgical instruments for processing and transport them to the decontamination areas.

4. Meets regulatory requirements for sterilization, high level disinfection and biological monitoring.

5. Assist with post procedure cleaning of the operative or other invasive procedure room and preparation of room for subsequent patients.

6. Maintain privacy and confidentiality of individuals and health information.

7. Demonstrates a working knowledge of regulatory standards and ensures that practice is compliant with hospital/departmental policies (AORN, CDC, OSHA, Joint Commission, CDPH, and CMS).

8. Orients, instructs and trains assigned personnel.

9. Utilizes the EMR to perform essential job functions.

10. Performs monthly outdates of supplies.

11. Assists with ordering of supplies.

12. Participate in the performance appraisal process.

13. Maintain required competencies

14. Recognizes unusual conditions outside of his/her expertise and seeks guidance of coworkers or supervisor.

15. Use problem-solving and conflict resolution skills to foster effective work relationships with team members.

16. Responds to the needs of the department by performing other duties, as necessary.