Eastern Florida State College offers an associate degree program in Surgical Services. Students in this program develop the technical ability and acquire the knowledge necessary for initial employment in a hospital operating room as a member of a surgical team and qualify for employment in any health care facility where surgery is performed. Students complete a one-year academic study including supervised clinical training in the Surgical Services lab on campus and in the modern surgical arenas of area health care facilities.

The program operates under the guidelines of the Association of Surgical Technologists (AST) and the Florida Department of Education.

Eastern Florida State College’s Surgical Technology Program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Program (www.caahep.org) upon the recommendation of the Accrediting Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting.

Accepted students will be required to review and acknowledge they have understood the following Functional Ability Categories and Representative Activities.

Essential Functions and Attributes

Carefully read the physical and sensory abilities listed below to ensure you can perform as the surgical profession does require these activities.

Gross Motor Skills:

• Move within confined spaces
• Maintain balance in multiple positions
• Reach above shoulders (e.g., adjust overhead lights)
• Reach below waist (e.g., plug electrical appliance into wall outlet)
• Reach out front

Fine Motor Skills:

• Pick up objects with hands
• Grasp small objects with hands firm and slight (ex. Surgical instruments, sutures)
• Write with pen or pencil
• Key/type (e.g., use a computer)
• Pinch/pick or otherwise work with fingers (e.g., manipulate a syringe)
• Twist (e.g., turn objects/knobs using hands)
• Squeeze with finger (e.g., eye dropper)
• Manual dexterity
• Finger dexterity
• Simultaneous use of hands, wrists, fingers
• Coordinate eye-hand and eye-hand foot (e.g., pumping soap dispenser and surgical scrub)

Physical Endurance:

• Stand for long periods of time from 2 to 4 hours
• Maintain same position for long periods of time
• Sustained repetitive movements

Communication of Safety Considerations

The surgical technology program ensures that the students receive information about known and suspected health hazards and toxic substances which they may be exposed to during clinical risk factors involved in the operating room. These include but are not limited to:

• Physical risk factors - temperature, noise, lightning, humidity air conditioning, air pollutants, ionized radiation, non ergonomic work conditions, latex allergy sharps injuries etc.
• Chemical risk factors - disinfectants anesthetic agents cytotoxic agent drugs some heavy metals such as mercury and latex are primary chemicals used in operating rooms glutaraldehyde, formaldehyde, ethylene oxide methyl methacrylate etc.
• Biological risk factors - hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and AIDS, respiratory transmitted diseases, coronavirus, various pathogens and blood borne infections, laser and electrical plume.
• Psychological risk factors - physiological reactions due to stress, workplace violence, bullying
• Ergonomic risk factors -musculoskeletal injuries, trips/fall
• Radiation risk factors -carcinomas caused by radiation exposure to thyroids, eyes, hands, and gonads are among the regions that are most affected by radiation

Policy Statement

Clinical site assignments for Surgical Technology students are determined solely by the Program Manager and assigned Instructor(s). Students are not permitted to select or request specific clinical sites or rotations. The purpose of this policy is to ensure fair, equitable, and educationally sound clinical experiences for all students while meeting the minimum requirement of 120 counted surgical cases in the first and second scrub roles, as outlined by the Accreditation Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC/STSA) and the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP).

Purpose

This policy provides clear guidelines for:

• The equitable assignment of clinical sites
• Ensuring students meet national certification requirements
• Maintaining the integrity and consistency of clinical education

Clinical Rotation Structure

The Surgical Technology clinical education component is divided into three (3) rotations:

1. Rotation 1 – 6 weeks
2. Rotation 2 – 10 weeks
3. Rotation 3 (Final Rotation) – 6 weeks
   • Schedule: Tuesday through Thursday, 6:30 AM to 3:00 PM

Assignment Process

• Clinical assignments will be determined based on programmatic needs, case diversity, availability of preceptors, and facility capacity.
• The Program Manager and assigned Instructor(s) will evaluate students’ educational needs, progress, and site suitability when making assignments.
• Assignments are final and non-negotiable.
• Clinical sites will be selected to maximize students’ opportunity to meet the required 120 scrubbed cases across a wide range of surgical specialties.

Travel Expectations

• Students may be required to drive over 50 miles one way to reach their assigned clinical site.
• It is the student's responsibility to arrange reliable transportation and to arrive punctually at their assigned clinical site by 6:30 AM on scheduled clinical days.
• Clinical attendance policies will apply regardless of travel distance.

Facility Affiliation and Compliance

• All assigned clinical sites are formally affiliated with the program through active clinical affiliation agreements.
• Students are expected to comply with each facility's policies, including confidentiality, dress code, professional behavior, and documentation requirements.
• Failure to comply with clinical expectations may result in disciplinary action, including removal from the clinical site and/or dismissal from the program.

Monitoring and Documentation

• Clinical performance, attendance, and case logs will be reviewed regularly by the assigned faculty.
• Case logs must be maintained accurately and submitted as directed to ensure that all cases are appropriately counted toward ARC/STSA benchmarks.

Surgical Technology Program Completion Rate

Academic Years: 2018-19; 2019-20; and 2020-21

Surgical Technology Assessment Exam Results

Academic Years: 2020-21 through 2023-24 - Percentage of graduates who passed the National Certified Surgical Technology Exam

Employment Outcomes

Objectives: The learner will:

1. Describe the purpose of the observation role.
2. Develop professional competency by performing in the scrub role during an arranged clinical experience.
3. Evaluate the development of professionalism throughout clinical experiences using various methods.
4. Utilize sufficient documentation for verifying cases and roles performed.
5. Demonstrate procedural proficiency by completing a minimum of 120 surgical cases.

Content:

1. Role definitions
   1. First Scrub Role (FS)
      1. To document a case in the FS role, the student shall perform the following duties   during any given surgical procedure with proficiency:
         1. Verify supplies and equipment
         2. Set up the sterile field
            1. Instruments
            2. Medication
            3. Supplies
         3. Perform required operative counts
            1. AST guidelines1
            2. Facility policy
         4. Pass instruments and supplies
            1. Anticipate needs
         5. Maintain sterile technique
            1. Recognize sterility breaks
            2. Correct sterility breaks
            3. Document as needed
   2. Second Scrub Role (SS)
      1. The SS role is defined as a student who has not met all criteria for the FS role but actively participates in the surgical procedure in its entirety by completing any of the following:
         1. Assistance with diagnostic endoscopy
         2. Assistance with vaginal delivery
         3. Cutting suture
         4. Providing camera assistance
         5. Retracting
         6. Sponging
         7. Suctioning
   3. Observation Role (O)
      1. The O role is defined as a student who has not met the FS or SS criteria. The student is observing a case in either the sterile or nonsterile role. Observation cases cannot be applied to the required 120 case count but must be documented.
2. Case requirements – A student must complete a minimum of 120 cases as delineated below:
   1. General surgery
      1. A student must complete a minimum of 30 cases in General Surgery.
         1. 20 of these cases must be performed in the FS role.
         2. The remaining 10 cases may be performed in either the FS or SS role.
   2. Specialty surgery
      1. A student must complete a minimum of 90 cases in various surgical specialties, excluding General Surgery.
         1. A minimum of 60 cases must be performed in the FS role and distributed amongst a minimum of four surgical specialties.
            1. A minimum of ten cases in four different specialties must be completed in the FS role (40 cases total).
            2. The additional 20 cases in the FS role may be distributed amongst any one surgical specialty or multiple surgical specialties.
         2. The remaining 30 cases may be performed in any surgical specialty in either the FS or SS role.
      2. Surgical specialties (excluding General Surgery)
         1. Cardiothoracic
         2. Genitourinary
         3. Neurologic
         4. Obstetric and gynecologic
         5. Orthopedic
         6. Otorhinolaryngologic
         7. Ophthalmologic
         8. Oral Maxillofacial
         9. Peripheral vascular
         10. Plastics and reconstructive
         11. Procurement and transplant
3. Counting cases
   1. Cases may be counted according to surgical specialty2as defined in the core curriculum.
      1. One pathology is counted as one procedure.
         
         Example: A patient requires a breast biopsy followed by mastectomy. It is one pathology, breast cancer, and the specialty is general surgery; therefore, it is counted and documented as one procedure and one case.
         
         
      2. Counting more than one case on the same patient.
         
         Example: A trauma patient requires a splenectomy and repair of a LeFort I fracture. Two cases can be counted and documented since the splenectomy is general surgery, and the LeFort I repair is an oral maxillofacial surgical specialty
         
         Example: A procedure that requires different set-ups and includes different specialties may be counted as separate cases. A mastectomy procedure (general surgery) followed with immediate reconstruction or augmentation (plastics and reconstruction) are counted as separate cases.
         
         
      3. Diagnostic vs. operative endoscopy cases
         1. An endoscopy classified as a semi-critical procedure is considered a diagnostic case.
         2. An endoscopy classified as a critical procedure is considered an operative case.
         3. Diagnostic and operative cases will be counted according to specialty. 
         4. Diagnostic cases are counted in the SS role up to a total of ten of the required 120 cases.
            
            Example: A cystoscopy is a diagnostic procedure. If an adjunct procedure is performed, it is considered operative; therefore, a cystoscopy with ureteral stent placement is an operative procedure.
            
            
   2. Vaginal delivery cases are counted in the SS role of the OB/GYN specialty, up to a total of five of the required 120.
4. Documentation2*
   1. Case performed
   2. Role performed
   3. Performance evaluations
   4. Verification by program director

Upon completion of the Surgical Technology Services program, and the initial accreditation approved, graduates are eligible to apply to the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA) to take the National Certifying Exam, provided all the eligibility requirements have been met.

Those who pass this exam demonstrate their theoretical and practical knowledge of surgical technology and are granted the designation Certified Surgical Technologist (CST).

The EFSC Surgical Services Program's mission is to "prepare competent entry level surgical technologists in the cognitive (knowledge), psycho-motor (skills), and affective (behavior) learning domains."