Will “Surgical First Assistant” be Replaced By Robots? 🤔

Unknown Chance of Automation

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Job Description

Assist surgeons during surgery by performing duties such as tissue retraction, insertion of tubes and intravenous lines, or closure of surgical wounds. Perform preoperative and postoperative duties to facilitate patient care.

Job Details

The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 29-2099.07

☝️ Information based on the reference occupation “Surgical Assistants”.

Also Known As…

Tasks for “Surgical First Assistant”

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

Related Technology & Tools

Vascular clamps
Carbon dioxide CO2 lasers
Blanket warmer cabinets
Hemostat clamps
Pagers
Multi-line telephone systems
Mayo stands
Eye magnets
Heart pacemakers
Sterile drapes
Argon beam coagulators
Cardiac monitoring equipment
Cell savers
Powered surgical drills
Subcutaneous injection syringes
Medical staple kits
C-arm tables
Angiocaths
Pressure steam autoclaves
Intravenous IV sets
Eye lasers
Laptop computers
Personal computers
Surgical dermatomes
Cauterizing equipment
Fluid warmers
Head stabilizers
Specimen collection containers
Urinary catheters
Pneumatic tourniquets
Surgical gloves
Fiberoptic endoscopes
Automated external defibrillators AED
Desktop computers
Patient transport stretchers
Surgical trocars
Blood warming equipment
Cast cutting saws
Neodymium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet Nd:YAG lasers
Anesthesia carts
Flash sterilizers
Telethermometers
Ethylene Oxide sterilizers
Nerve stimulators
Surgical razors
Endoscopic camera/video systems
Surgical masks
Surgical retractors
Surgical protective goggles
Surgical robots
Sterile gowns
Patient positioning devices
Suture kits
Hypothermia units
Hospital intercom equipment
Laparoscopes
Wound drains
Body stabilizers
Medical image processing printers
Surgical scalpels
Suction machines
Surgical clamps
Surgical fracture tables

Electronic medical record EMR software
Microsoft Excel
Surgery workflow communication software
Patient tracking software
MEDITECH software
Patient scheduling software
Supply documentation software
Nursing documentation software