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Maintain an unobstructed operative field, using surgical retractors, sponges, or suctioning and irrigating equipment.
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Coordinate with anesthesia personnel to maintain patient temperature.
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Pass instruments or supplies to surgeon during procedure.
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Assist members of surgical team with gowning or gloving.
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Assist with patient resuscitation during cardiac arrest or other life-threatening events.
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Adjust and maintain operating room temperature, humidity, or lighting, according to surgeon's specifications.
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Postoperatively inject a subcutaneous local anesthetic agent to reduce pain.
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Cover patients with surgical drapes to create and maintain a sterile operative field.
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Verify the identity of patient or operative site.
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Remove patient hair or disinfect incision sites to prepare patient for surgery.
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Assist in the insertion, positioning, or suturing of closed-wound drainage systems.
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Prepare and apply sterile wound dressings.
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Discuss with surgeon the nature of the surgical procedure, including operative consent, methods of operative exposure, diagnostic or laboratory data, or patient-advanced directives or other needs.
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Gather, arrange, or assemble instruments or supplies.
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Insert or remove urinary bladder catheters.
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Assess skin integrity or other body conditions upon completion of the procedure to determine if damage has occurred from body positioning.
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Monitor patient intra-operative status, including patient position, vital signs, or volume and color of blood.
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Operate sterilizing devices.
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Assist in volume replacement or autotransfusion techniques.
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Apply sutures, staples, clips, or other materials to close skin, facia, or subcutaneous wound layers.
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Assist in applying casts, splints, braces, or similar devices.
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Incise tissue layers in lower extremities to harvest veins.
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Obtain or inspect sterile or non-sterile surgical equipment, instruments, or supplies.
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Coordinate or participate in the positioning of patients, using body stabilizing equipment or protective padding to provide appropriate exposure for the procedure or to protect against nerve damage or circulation impairment.
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Monitor and maintain aseptic technique throughout procedures.
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Determine availability of necessary equipment or supplies for operative procedures.
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Transport patients to operating room.
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Clamp, ligate, or cauterize blood vessels to control bleeding during surgical entry, using hemostatic clamps, suture ligatures, or electrocautery equipment.