First on duty
The first members of a surgical team to scrub up are the surgical technologists who prepare the instruments surgeons use, handing each one to them during an operation.
It’s an important function on the surgical team and our program will prepare you to take your place next to the surgeon.
We also offer you the opportunity to earn a Central Processing Distribution certificate first and work as a sterile processing technician while completing your associate degree. This would provide you with a great experience in your field and an income while still in college.
For a look at all the courses in our program, consult the course list.
Hospital as classroom
Our faculty have all worked on surgical teams as a surgical technologist and will make sure you know what to expect.
You’ll learn in classroom, lab and on clinical assignment in a hospital as you gain the skills necessary to assist a surgeon in an operating room.
Your courses will include:
- Medical Terminology
- Introduction to Surgical Technology
- Orientation to Central Processing Distribution Technician
- Introduction to Surgical Patient Care Techniques
- Surgical Specialties
- And more!
And the credits you earn in our courses will transfer to a four-year college or university if you’re interested in earning a bachelor’s degree and taking on greater responsibilities in the operating room.
Ready for surgery?
Professor Elizabeth Ness is our program advisor and can answer your questions. Contact her at nesse@macomb.edu or 586.286.2192.
A shortage of scrub techs
There’s a great need for surgical technologists (also called scrub techs in hospitals) and you shouldn’t have any problem finding work after you complete our program.
Use this handy tool to see what’s available locally and what you can expect to earn.
And if you aren’t recruited out of the program or during your clinicals, our Career Services team can help you with the job search, preparing for interviews and polishing your resume.
Additional Information
Select programs in Health and Human Services require specific criteria to gain admission, such as testing requirements or minimum grade point average in prerequisite courses. Please view the Selective Admissions program application packet for information on application requirements, ranking and deadlines.
For information on how to apply to a Selective Admissions program, please email us at selectiveadmissions@macomb.edu. Selective Admissions applicants are encouraged to meet with an academic advisor or counselor prior to submitting an application to the program. This meeting will allow for review of the application process, program prerequisites and requirements. Contact the Counseling and Academic Advising Office at 586.445.7999 for office hours.
The goal of the Health and Public Services Division is to prepare every student to think critically and practice competently and compassionately in rapidly changing environments. All efforts are designed to build knowledge, enhance practical skills, and promote patient and the population’s safety. Furthermore, the program is designed to foster professional integrity and ultimately improve the health outcomes and protection of patients, families, and communities across the continuum of care and practice. Students must possess certain functional abilities, essential for the delivery of safe, effective clinical care and protection of the public during clinical and internship training activities in the field. Therefore, the faculty has determined that certain technical standards are required for admission to, progression in, and graduation from the Health and Public Services (HPS) programs.
In addition to classroom learning, clinical and internship learning occurs throughout the HPS programs and involves considerations (such as patient and population safety and clinical and internship facility safety) that are not present in classroom accommodations. Applicants or students interested in HPS programs who seek accommodations prior to or immediately after enrolling in the college are highly encouraged to also request an assessment of the types of reasonable accommodations needed for the clinical and or internship components of the program.
An individual must be able to independently, with or without reasonable accommodation, meet the following technical standards of general abilities: (1) observation; (2) communication; (3) motor skills; (4) intellectual, conceptual, and quantitative abilities; (5) essential behavioral and social attributes; and (6) ability to manage stressful situations. Individuals unable to meet these technical standards, with or without reasonable accommodation will not be able to complete the programs and are counseled to pursue alternative careers.
SPECIAL SERVICES STATEMENT: Students may individually discuss the essential functions and technical standards with a college counselor from our Special Services department. In compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the American Disability Act of 1991, academic accommodations may be provided to students who have a documented disability.
For further information, visit Special Services.