Surgical Technology (AAS)

This applies to students starting on or after November 27, 2023 

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Students starting their program before November 2023 will complete the following program

Associate of Applied Science Degree

Contact Hours: 1,655

Semester Credits: 68

Instructional Weeks – Full Time: 70

Average Time to Complete – Full Time: 17 Months

Program Mission

The mission of the Surgical Technology program is to prepare graduates with the basic knowledge and fundamental practical and professional skills needed for employment as entry-level generalists in the field. The program combines academic studies in the classroom, hands-on laboratory instruction, and clinical training in various surgical settings to prepare graduates who are eligible for employment in a variety of surgical settings.

Clinical Case Requirements

Students must complete a total of 120 surgical procedures as delineated below. Students must complete a minimum of 30 cases in General Surgery, 20 of which must be in the first scrub role. The remaining 10 cases may be performed in either the first or second scrub role. Students must complete a minimum of 90 cases in various surgical specialties, excluding General Surgery, 60 which must be performed in the first scrub role. The additional 30 cases may be performed in either the first or second scrub role. A minimum of 60 surgical specialty cases must be performed in the first scrub role and distributed amongst a minimum of four surgical specialties. A minimum of 10 cases in the first scrub role must be completed in each of the required minimum of four surgical specialties (40 cases total required). The additional 20 cases in the first scrub role may be distributed amongst any one surgical specialty or multiple surgical specialties. The remaining 30 cases may be performed in either the first or second scrub role. Observations must be documented but are not counted. Diagnostic endoscopy cases and vaginal delivery cases are not mandatory. However, up to 10 diagnostic endoscopic cases and five vaginal delivery cases can be counted toward the maximum number of second scrub role cases. Vaginal delivery cases must be documented in the category of Labor and Delivery rather than in the OB/GYN specialty. These are requirements of the Revised “Surgical Rotation Case Requirements,” Core Curriculum for Surgical Technology, 6th Ed.

All student activities associated with the curriculum, especially while students are completing clinical rotations, will be educational in nature. Students will not be substituted for hired staff personnel within the clinical institution, in the capacity of a surgical technologist.

Program Outcome

To prepare competent, entry-level Surgical Technologists in the cognitive (knowledge), psychomotor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains.

Program Goals

Cognitive Domain

The student will:

• Grasp concepts of human anatomy and physiology, pathophysiology, microbiology and infectious process and recognize his or her relationship to safe patient care;
• Understand the principles of safe patient care in the preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative settings; and
• Recognize the interdependent role of the Surgical Technologist with the other team members and ancillary services providers.

Psychomotor Domain

The student will:

• Develop and apply fundamental surgical assisting skills through practice and evaluation in the clinical setting;
• Accurately apply the principles of asepsis across the spectrum of common surgical experiences; and
• Employ the Standard Precautions and other recognized safe practice guidelines in every surgical setting.

Affective Domain

The student will:

• Recognize the variety of patients’ needs and the impact of his or her personal, physical, emotional and cultural experiences on the rendering of patient care;
• Demonstrate professional responsibility in performance, attitude, and personal conduct; and
• Practice within the confines of the recognized scope of practice within the healthcare community to provide optimal patient care.

Description of the Profession

The Surgical Technologist is a highly skilled and knowledgeable allied health professional who, as an essential member of the surgical team, works with surgeons, anesthesia providers, operating room nurses, and other professionals in providing safe care to the surgical patient. Surgical Technologists possess expertise in assisting surgeons in the safe and effective conduct of both major and minor surgical procedures in several specialty services and in a variety of surgical settings.

Professional duties include aseptic technique, operating room environmental safety, equipment setup, instrumentation, preparing medications, and directly assisting in the three phases of surgical patient care: preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative. The entry-level Surgical Technologist works in acute-care hospitals, outpatient surgery centers, surgical clinics, central sterile processing departments, birthing centers, and other healthcare settings throughout the United States.

Program Delivery

The Surgical Technology program is delivered in a blended format. Courses will be delivered entirely online, entirely on-ground or with an appropriate blend of both online and on-ground hours in the same course. Of the 1,655 program hours, a maximum of 575 course hours (34.7%) may be offered online (including general education courses). Campuses may have the option to deliver general education courses either online or on-ground depending on local need and availability specific time, regardless of their eligibility status upon enrollment.

Program Objectives

The program is designed to prepare graduates with the basic knowledge and fundamental practical and professional skills needed for employment as entry-level generalists in the field. It combines academic studies, hands-on laboratory instruction and clinical training in various surgical settings to prepare graduates who are eligible to sit for the National Certifying Examination for Surgical Technologists as sponsored by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA). The program meets Standards and Guidelines for the Accreditation of Educational Programs in Surgical Technology as established by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) and as required by the Accreditation Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC/STSA).

Registration and certification requirements for taking and passing this examination are not controlled by Concorde, but by outside agencies, and are subject to change by the agency without notice. Therefore, Concorde cannot guarantee that graduates will be eligible to take this exam, at all or at any specific time, regardless of their eligibility status upon enrollment.

* These courses may be offered entirely online or entirely on-ground at the campus.