The second annual Joint Conference of the Association of Surgical Assistants and National Surgical Assistant Association will take place on April 23-24 in Orlando, Florida. The conference will offer a range of workshops, exhibitions, discussions and more on emerging trends in the world of surgical assisting.
The February and March Virtual AFE Workshops were a roaring success! Co-presented with ARC/STSA’s education initiative, EdAccred, the events drew a range of new and seasoned program directors, clinical coordinators, instructors and administrators. Interested in a future workshop and wondering where you fit in? Take a glance to learn who’s who at the February AFE.
ARC/STSA would like to congratulate the surgical technology program at East Mississippi Community College in Mayhew, MS, for achieving initial accreditation. Please join us in celebrating their hard work and hear from Surgical Technology Program Director Alicia King, BS, CSFA, CST, on what this means for their students.
As we settle into a new year, I expect you are all off to an incredibly busy 2021! I hope you have an escape mechanism in place, something you can focus on that relaxes and rejuvenates you so you can better handle your incredibly busy schedules. My mechanism is music. I have been thinking a lot lately about the following lyric…
The Da Vinci Surgical System offers an advanced set of instruments for surgeons to use in performing robotic-assisted minimally invasive surgery. This cutting-edge technology is already making its way into operating rooms (ORs) across the country, which affects the job of the surgical technologist. To ensure students are provided with greater marketability when they enter the workforce, the surgical technology program at Reading Hospital has incorporated the Da Vinci Surgical Certification program into its coursework. ARC/STSA spoke to Gwendolynn Jackson, AAS, RN, CST, surgical technology faculty at Reading Hospital, to learn more about the certification.
At Pikes Peak Community College in Colorado Springs, CO, David Provost, MA, BS, CST, surgical technology department chair and program director, has developed a mentorship program where his first cohort of students, who are in clinicals, mentor the incoming cohort. ARC/STSA spoke to Provost about his inspiration for the program and how it has benefitted the department. Plus, hear from mentors and mentees about how the program helped boost their confidence.
Since 2013, the master of surgical assisting program at Eastern Virginia Medical School has offered the minimally invasive surgery lecture and skills lab. This course is designed to give the surgical assistant student a broad look into minimally invasive surgery while introducing the techniques involved. The content includes numerous sub-specialties and how minimally invasive techniques are utilized, the history of these techniques, as well as hands-on learning to help facilitate the student’s learning curve once they are in their clinical year. This course is aligned with the guidelines suggested by the Association of Surgical Assistants for minimally invasive and robotic surgery techniques.
There are many ways to prepare students for their clinical experience. Some programs have started using SynDaver, a detailed synthetic cadaver that gives students the ability to participate in mock surgeries. ARC/STSA reached out to Stephanie Kanupp, AAS, CST, and Michelle Diaz, CST, to talk about how their programs use SynDaver and their thoughts on the investment.
ARC/STSA would like to congratulate the surgical technology and surgical assisting programs that have recently received grants of initial and continuing accreditation. Please join us in acknowledging the dedication and hard work it took for these programs to reach these critical milestones.
Ron Kruzel, MA, CAE, CST From Ron Kruzel, MA, CAE, CST, ARC/STSA Executive Director “You say goodbye, and I say hello…” —Paul McCartney GOODBYE 2020! As 2020 draws to a close, what is there left to say? We have tried to make sense of it all, memes have flowed freely and we are all exhausted. 2020 really was [...]
