The ARC/STSA recognizes and commends administrators, program directors, and faculty for their steadfast commitment to the education and preparation of competent entry-level surgical technologists and surgical assistants, especially during these unprecedented times.
The ARC/STSA Board of Directors and staff are working to support our educators as you continue to fulfill your mission to serve your students. As such, we have made adjustments to the annual reporting process and have developed additional resources to support you.
2020 Annual Reporting
The launch of the 2020 Annual Report for both surgical technology and surgical assisting programs has been extended until January of 2021 due to the extreme challenges that our programs are facing. We understand and appreciate the extraordinary amount of time you have devoted and continue to devote to safely provide a quality education to your students in the midst of daily uncertainty. Therefore, programs will be responsible for completing and submitting a 2020 Annual Report, but not until early 2021.
Reporting Temporary Changes Due to COVID-19
The ARC/STSA recognizes that programs have had to make difficult decisions to delay or interrupt studies, offer limited or redesigned coursework, and/or initiate different approaches and strategies influenced by individual institutional policies/procedures, and governmental regulations throughout this pandemic. We understand that these plans are fluid as the public health environment shifts across the country.
As such, programs are no longer being asked to submit notifications of these temporary, nonsubstantive changes due to the pandemic to info@arcstsa.net as requested in March. Instead, programs are asked to record these changes on a newly created, COVID-19 Plan of Action form, and maintain this form in your files to track the temporary changes your program initiates that are directly related to the impact of the COVID-19 crisis. The COVID-19 Plan of Action form does not need to be submitted at this time, this information will be submitted as part of the annual reporting process. In the meantime, the ARC/STSA will distribute brief surveys to gather information regarding our programs’ status through December 2020. Click the box below to link to the form, which is posted on the ARC/STSA website under the COVID-19 page and the Forms & Facts page.
COVID-19 FAQs
The ARC/STSA has compiled a list of responses to frequently asked questions as guidance for programs working to address the specific needs of their students, graduates and communities of interest in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Please click the link below to download the FAQ sheet, which is posted on the ARC/STSA website under the COVID-19 page.
Webinar Recording and Resources: Maintaining Safety & Quality When Reopening Labs
Many thanks to everyone who attended our inaugural webinar on July 10 sponsored by the ARC/STSA, EdAccred and AST. The recording of the webinar is posted on the ARC/STSA website along with resources from EdAccred and our panelists. The materials are available to all; so if you were not able to join and hear the insights shared by three of our experienced program directors, be sure to access the presentation slides, recording and additional resources linked below.
