Healthcare Practitioners
Surgical Technologists
Also called: Central Supply Technician (Central Supply Tech), Certified Scrub Technician (Certified Scrub Tech), CST (Certified Surgical Technologist), OR Surgical Tech (Operating Room Surgical Technician)
US median pay
$64,650
per year, 2025
Job growth 2025–35
+5%
faster than average
Openings a year (US)
7,100
118,400 employed
Typical entry education
Postsecondary nondegree award
Preparation 3/5 · Medium preparation
What this job is
Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons, registered nurses, or other surgical personnel. May help set up operating room, prepare and transport patients for surgery, adjust lights and equipment, pass instruments and other supplies to surgeons and surgeons' assistants, hold retractors, cut sutures, and help count sponges, needles, supplies, and instruments.
What they do day to day
- Maintain a proper sterile field during surgical procedures.
- Count sponges, needles, and instruments before and after operation.
- Hand instruments and supplies to surgeons and surgeons' assistants, hold retractors and cut sutures, and perform other tasks as directed by surgeon during operation.
- Scrub arms and hands and assist the surgical team to scrub and put on gloves, masks, and surgical clothing.
- Wash and sterilize equipment, using germicides and sterilizers.
- Prepare patients for surgery, including positioning patients on the operating table and covering them with sterile surgical drapes to prevent exposure.
- Prepare, care for, and dispose of tissue specimens taken for laboratory analysis.
- Monitor and continually assess operating room conditions, including patient and surgical team needs.
- Prepare dressings or bandages and apply or assist with their application following surgery.
- Clean and restock operating room, gathering and placing equipment and supplies and arranging instruments according to instructions, such as a preference card.
Skills and knowledge that matter most
Skills
- Operations Monitoring3.2/5
- Time Management3.1/5
- Service Orientation3.1/5
- Social Perceptiveness3.0/5
- Operation and Control3.0/5
- Management of Material Resources3.0/5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.0/5
- Instructing3.0/5
Knowledge
- Medicine and Dentistry4.1/5
- English Language4.0/5
- Customer and Personal Service3.8/5
- Education and Training3.3/5
- Production and Processing2.7/5
- Psychology2.7/5
Importance rated by people working in the job (1 = not important, 5 = extremely important).
Education and preparation
Preparation level 3 of 5 — Medium preparation. Usually vocational training, an associate's degree or an apprenticeship.
Typical entry education (BLS): Postsecondary nondegree award.
Who this job suits
Mostly Realistic
Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals
Conventional
Organising data, details and procedures
Social
Helping, teaching and caring for people
Based on the Holland (RIASEC) interest profile for this occupation.