Summary:  The Surgical Assistant is a trained individual who is able to participate in and actively assist the surgeon in completing a surgical case safely and expeditiously by helping to provide exposure, maintain hemostasis, and other technical functions. Surgical Assistants (SAs) must meet national standards and be credentialed by the hospital. SAs are not authorized to operate independently. Formal application for appointment as an SA will include the following qualifications and credentials:

1.     Specification of which surgeon(s) the applicant will assist and of the duties that will be performed.

2.     Indication of which surgeon(s)will be responsible for the supervision and performance of the Surgical Assistant (SA).

3.     Review and approval of the application by the hospital board.

4.     Surgeons are encouraged to participate in the training of allied health personnel. Such individuals perform their duties under the supervision of the surgeon.

Essential Functions:

To perform this job, an individual must perform each essential function satisfactorily with or without a reasonable accommodation. 

Assist in operations under the supervision of surgeons. May, in accordance with State laws, help surgeons to make incisions and close surgical sites, manipulate or remove tissues, implant surgical devices or drains, suction the surgical site, place catheters, clamp or cauterize vessels or tissue, and apply dressings to surgical site. 

In addition, perioperative duties that may be performed by the surgical assistant who has received the appropriate training as outlined by the Core Curriculum for Surgical Assisting, 3rd Edition (2014), may include duties such as assisting with intraoperative positioning, injection of local anesthesia (i.e. ASA Local Anesthesia Guidelines), insertion of trocars (i.e. ASA Trocar Guidelines), preparation of grafts, use of appropriate suturing or stapling devices, securing drains, application of casts, facilitating patient rounds, changing dressings, and other duties as approved and assigned by the supervising surgeon and local facility.

The facility will identify procedures or situations in which the Surgical Assistant should not simultaneously function in the scrub role when serving as the first assistant. Examples may include procedures such as arthroplasty, open heart, laminectomy, etc.

The surgical assistant provides immediate support to the surgeon, direct patient care and should act as a vital resource to the staff of the operating room suite.