Surgical Technician

Emory Healthcare•Atlanta, GA

3d•Onsite

About The Position

Emory Healthcare is seeking a Surgical Technician to join their Perioperative Surgical Department. This role involves implementing and evaluating care for patients undergoing diagnostic and invasive surgical procedures, with a focus on complex health issues. The technician will serve as a clinical resource, analyze surgical outcomes, and participate in committees. They are expected to be an expert in at least one specialty area and competent in multiple specialties, including General Surgery, ENT, Robotics, Ophthalmology, Complex GYN, Complex Ortho/Spine, Thoracic, and Vascular. The position also involves cost containment, supply management, identifying patient needs, prioritizing procedures, documenting incidents, planning interventions, and ensuring appropriate standards of care are met. The role requires determining necessary equipment and resources, communicating patient and staff needs, keeping the peri-operative team informed, and maintaining professional behavior. Responsibilities include developing and revising protocols, documenting care, setting and meeting goals in clinical practice, management, education, and/or research, active membership in professional organizations, and functioning as a resource for patient advocacy and interdisciplinary needs. The technician will also assist in identifying staff and patient education needs, contribute to new staff and student orientation, and serve as a role model or mentor. Compliance with policies and procedures, successful completion of orientation programs, and attendance at educational programs are expected. The role supports research and quality monitoring to improve patient care, serves as a clinical resource for Surgical Technologists, reviews and revises surgical preference cards, and participates in performance improvement programs. The technician will assist surgeons and nurses in the operating room with patient and equipment preparation, aseptic technique, and surgical procedures. This includes preparing the operating room by assembling supplies, materials, instruments, and equipment, and operating specialized instrumentation. Following procedures for accounting of sharps, sponges, and instruments is also a key responsibility.

Requirements

A high school diploma or equivalent.
Graduation from a surgical technology program or equivalent job training, which may include military perioperative programs and/or hospital-based training programs.
Two years multispecialty experience with one year in a complex specialty area.
Must be able to function as a clinical expert in two or more complex specialty service lines and have the ability to float to other complex service lines as needed.
Basic Life Support (BLS) Certification in accordance with the American Heart Association required.

Nice To Haves

Certification in Surgical Technology preferred.

Responsibilities

Implements and evaluates care of pediatric, adolescent, adult, and geriatric patients undergoing diagnostic and invasive surgical procedures.
Provides care to patients with complex health issues and serves as a clinical resource to staff.
Analyzes and anticipates less predictable outcomes of surgical interventions.
Leads service area based committees.
Individual is considered an expert in at least one specialty area and can competently handle multiple specialties.
Participates in identifying cost containment activities.
Monitors and maintains supplies and initiates purchases to ensure par levels.
Identifies more complex patient needs by reviewing procedure protocol, physician's request, and assessing the patient's physical needs.
Prioritizes procedure process and supplies for specialty group of patients.
Identifies verbally or in writing unusual incidents during patient care procedures and identifies complex procedure problems related to patient reaction, symptoms, or changes in needs based on patient reactions.
Plans for surgical procedure based on identified needs of surgeon and patient.
Implements intervention for identified patient problems as related to surgical procedure and patient needs.
Utilizes appropriate standards of care, and/or collaborative clinical pathways to guide the plan of care.
Determine the equipment, materials, and resources needed to meet the patient procedure plan.
Communicates patients' and staff needs and responses through written and verbal communication to management as appropriate.
Keeps the peri-operative team abreast of the procedure needs and progress.
Maintains courteous and professional behavior in all interactions.
Participates in the development and revision of procedure protocols, unit based forms and specialty clinical pathways.
Documents all aspects of care by following the established unit procedure.
Establishes and meets goals in one or more of the following areas: clinical practice, management, education, and/or research.
Active membership in professional organization.
Functions as a resource to resolve issues related to patient advocacy.
Acts as a resource for complex interdisciplinary needs.
Identifies available supply resources to meet procedure needs.
Assists in identifying staff and patient education needs based on clinical situations and recommends appropriate inservice.
Assists with planning and conducting department orientation of new staff and students.
Assists with unit based competency requirements.
Serves as role model or mentor for new staff and students.
Complies with established policies and procedures.
Provides input in developing and revising policies and procedures pertaining to specialized patient population to improve the quality of patient care.
Successfully completes hospital and department based orientation programs.
Attends educational programs to develop optimal knowledge in area of specialty.
Assists in identifying ways in which patient and procedure outcomes can be modified through research and/or quality monitoring to improve the quality of patient care.
Serves as clinical resource for Surgical Technologists in designated service line for orienting new employees.
Reviews and identifies revisions to the surgical preference cards for designated service.
Participates in unit based and hospital wide performance improvement programs.
Assists in research and related activities in the surgery department.
Identifies and communicates researchable problems as appropriate.
Analyzes and reports data to appropriate source.
Performs related responsibilities as required.
Assists surgeons and nurses with patients, equipment preparation, aseptic technique, and surgical procedures in the operating room.
Prepares the operating room for surgery by assembling routine supplies, materials, instruments, and equipment; obtains special supplies indicated by physician.
Set up and operate a variety of specialized instrumentation, manual and powered equipment.
Follows procedures for pre and post-operative accounting of sharps, sponges and instruments used in the surgical set up.