working as a surgical tech for clinical experience

[jasmynediva]

Hi everyone. has anyone here ever worked as a surgical tech aka scrub at a hospital while doing their postbaccs? If so how was the experience and will it help when applying to medical school or do adcoms look down on this type of work? I aspire to be a surgeon and im curious to know whats its like to be in the OR. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

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[sunnyjohn]

Hi.

I'm a Certifed Surgical Technologist, CST. I love my job. At present I work as a traveller and move to different hospitals depending on need. I am a non-trad so I went to scrub school to assure myself healthcare was for me. I am presently working simultaneously on a d-i-y pre-med post-baccalaureate as well as a nursing degree.

Working in the OR has been a wonderful experience. I've gotten to see and do things most pre-meds never do. As a tech you'll see more of the inside of the human body than 95% of people on the planet.

The clincial experience has been invaluable. I've scrubbed transplants, conjoined twins separations and everything in between. I've even scrubbed during surgery on babies that where still in utero.

I've been able to use my training to volunteer in medical teams abroad. Because of my travels I have worked with many world famous surgeons and received some great LOR's.

A Surgical Tech program would take you at least one year. It would also take at least another 6-months to a year of paid training to become "comfortable" with your skills. Not sure if you are willing to invest the time, but for my situation, it was perfect.

My experience as a CST is a bit outisde of the norm. I have not applied to med school yet, but when I show doctor friends who are former ad com members and medical school advisors my CV they are all very impressed and say I really do stand out.

Good Luck

 

[SigPi]

Hi everyone. has anyone here ever worked as a surgical tech aka scrub at a hospital while doing their postbaccs? If so how was the experience and will it help when applying to medical school or do adcoms look down on this type of work? I aspire to be a surgeon and im curious to know whats its like to be in the OR. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

I'm starting as a surgical tech at the end of august. My hospital didnt require certification for the postion --paid OTJ training for 6 months. Problem with that is I wont be able to sit for the cert. exam, like sunnyjohn, as that requires a formal program. Not that big of a prob for me though since I dont plan on moving and am applying to schools this year. I too am interested in the OR (surg and anesthesia) so I agree that this kind of position should give people like us some nice exposure to the profession(s) and significant clinical experience. good luck

 

[jasmynediva]

Thank you sunnyjohn for giving me an insiders perspective on ST. After reading your post, im even more encouraged to become a surgical tech. Its sounds very exciting,and the experience will definately make you stand out from other applicants. You'll certainly have alot to talk about during your interviews. When you are in the O.R, how much of the surgery do you get to see? ie. are you close enough to the operating table to be able to see the organs and whats going on? And what kind of relationships have you built with surgeons in your feild over the years?

To Sigpi: Thats awesome that the hosptal is willing to teach you. I thought going through a formal program was a must and wasnt aware that this was possible. If you dont mind me asking, how were you able to convince them to provide paid OTJ training ie. who did you talk to, what did you say? What state are you in? Eitherway thats way kool! I talked to another person who is currently in medschool now, and he went through a process similar to yours ie, he was taught on the job. Sounds like a sweeet deal to me. Something im going to consider.

 

[sunnyjohn]

How much do you see? You see it all. If they open the abdomen you'll see that stomach or colon. If they open that chest, you'll see that beating heart and lungs. Depending on your scrub duties, level of training and your hospital, you'll be called upon to stick in a hand to retract or hold suction.

Every once in a while you'll get muscled out due to large amounts of equipment or extra people around the table. As a tech it is your job to anticipate the needs of the surgeon. They expect you to have that next tool ready before they ask for it. In order to do that you must be able to see what's going on.

Do you recall those medical TV shows with that person up at the operating table standing behind what looks like a little covered tray with instruments on top? That tray is a Mayo stand and that person is the scrub, your job.

I've developed friendships with many of the surgeons and MDA's I've worked with. The nurses are also a great resource. After working in one place for a while you'll find a surgical specialty you like and end up working with the surgeons in that specialty often. They may even ask for you if they like you and know your a good scrub. I've travelled on medical teams overseas with a few of them and gotten LOR's from folks all over. It helps when you show them you are willing to learn, take direction and be proactive.

Since you have plans to go to med school, if you can find the kind of situation Sig Pi has you should take it. I'm all for certification and proper training, but a solid OJT program will allow you to meet both your goals simultaneously while earning a paycheck.

 

[SigPi]

To Sigpi: Thats awesome that the hosptal is willing to teach you. I thought going through a formal program was a must and wasnt aware that this was possible. If you dont mind me asking, how were you able to convince them to provide paid OTJ training ie. who did you talk to, what did you say? What state are you in? Eitherway thats way kool! I talked to another person who is currently in medschool now, and he went through a process similar to yours ie, he was taught on the job. Sounds like a sweeet deal to me. Something im going to consider.

Yeah, I think I got pretty lucky with this program. I actually worked in the hospital pharmacy for a year and a half (when i thought thats what I wanted to do), right now I am a researcher at the med school across the street from the hospital but still work in the pharmacy PRN for extra $ now and then. I just happened to be browsing the hospital's HR website and it listed an internal posting for a surgical tech trainee position (sure glad I stayed on PRN and didnt flat out quit that pharmacy job!). BTW when I was working full time in the pharmacy we had a small OR satellite (1pharmacist, 1-2 techs)that strictly served the rooms. I was trained there about 2 months before I went PRN--so i already had my foot in the door. From what i understand our hospital training program is offered semifrequently depending on turnover, etc. The the requirements were just college a & P, cpr cert, and pref an LPN. I interviewed with the surgical nurse manager....basically told her my qualifications and that i was really interested in surgery and anesthesia. I had the first two requirements and I guess they accepted my emt-b certification in place of the nursing degree. oh yeah, to answer your question I am an Illinois resident. LOL writing about this has got me pumped for aug 29th! (my start date)