 | Life in the operating room (OR) can be hectic and demanding, with life-threatening emergencies often arising despite hours of careful planning and preparation. The surgical team must be ready to meet these potential complications. As a key member of the team, the surgical technologist must anticipate the needs of both the patient and the surgeon to ensure that each operation goes as smoothly as possible. | To give you an idea of what this important position entails, here is an overview of the phases a surgical technologist must go through with every surgery. 1. Preoperative Phase - Sterile Hands The surgical technologist, often referred to as a surgical tech, is the first person to enter the OR before surgery. During this preoperative phase, the surgical technologist carefully dons his or her operating room attire, including scrubs, and begins to prepare and sterilize the room. The surgical tech gathers all of the equipment and surgical tools that the surgery requires, and then sterilizes, counts and carefully arranges them. The most important part of this preoperative phase is creating and maintaining the OR's sterile environment. Sterile fields can be compromised in a variety of ways, the most common of which is by introducing moisture. When sterile supplies and surfaces become wet, bacteria and other microorganisms can more easily enter. To prevent this, the surgical technologist is responsible for arranging dry sterile drapes around the operating table and keeping all surfaces in a sterile condition.  After the area is sterilized, the surgical technologist helps each member of the surgical team "suit up" as the team member enters the room. Bacteria and other microorganisms are the greatest threat in the OR, and to thoroughly protect the patient from these invisible killers during the surgery, the surgical tech must make certain that each member of the surgical team is properly sterilized. 2. Intraoperative Phase - The Third Hand During the intraoperative phase of the surgery, surgical technologists are first and foremost responsible for maintaining the sterility of the OR. However, they also effectively become a "third hand" to the surgeon and surgeon's assistant during operations. Surgical technologists help prepare medications and administer them to the patient, as well as assist in retracting tissues from the patient as required. The surgical tech is also the team member who passes the surgical tools to the surgeon and surgical assistant, and the one who monitors the patient's vital statistics during the operation. At any time during an operation, if a tool is missing or contaminated, the delay or resulting infection could cost a patient his or her life. That is why surgical technologists must be diligent and thorough at all times. 3. Postoperative Phase - Tying Things Up As the operation concludes, surgical techs are responsible for counting all of the tools and instruments used during surgery to ensure that nothing is left behind in a patient. The smallest sponge can cause irreparable damage if left in the body, and can even lead to death. Once the instruments are accounted for, the surgical technologist is responsible for suturing the incision and applying sterile dressings to the area. Following that, the tech must properly dispose of items such as needles and gauze, and must continue to maintain the OR's sterile environment until the patient is sent to the recovery ward. At the end of each operation, the surgical technician can breathe a momentary sigh of relief at a job well done before carefully preparing the OR for the next patient. 4. Thinking-On-Your-Feet Phase - Cell Phones in the OR While surgical techs aren't expected to work miracles, they must be able to think quickly on their feet in emergency situations. During a recent hospital blackout and emergency generator failure, one quick-thinking surgical tech, with the help of the patient's family member, rounded up enough cell phones to illuminate the OR while surgeons completed an emergency appendectomy. In another instance, a surgical tech delivered a baby in the front seat of a car in a valet parking garage. While most of the time such dramatic situations are reserved for Hollywood, emergencies do happen, which is why surgical technologists must be prepared for nearly any scenario.
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