Scott Bradberry was referring to Central Tech when he said, “Surgical Technology changed everything in my life. It prepared me for what I was going to do, for everything I’ve faced, and for every aspect of being a surg tech.”

Since 2002 Central Tech’s ten-month Surgical Technology program has been preparing students, like Bradberry, to enter the cutting edge medical field by teaching the necessities to assist in and outside the operating room.

Surg techs perform many jobs in the operating room, and in the course students learn to set up surgical equipment, pass instruments to the surgeon, prepare and ensure the integrity of a sterile field, cut sutures, apply dressings and more.

“There’s nothing you can’t do as a surg tech. There’s not a case you can’t do, not a surgery you can’t scrub in for after this class,” Bradberry said.

Students also learn how to perform jobs outside the operating room such as managing central supply departments and evaluating surgical products.

During the ten-month program students will have more than 600 hours of dedicated clinical hours, and will perform in 120 surgeries.

Clinicals are performed close to home in hospitals and surgery centers located in Ponca City, Stillwater, Cushing, Drumright, Bristow, Tulsa, Muskogee, and Cleveland.

“Central Tech is nationally certified by the Commission on Allied Accreditation for Healthcare Education Programs,” said Todd Prough, Central Tech surgical technology instructor. “After completing the program students will sit for the national exam certification, at no extra cost to the student.”

Students finishing Central Tech’s surg tech program currently hold a 90% pass rate on the national exam, nearly 20% higher than the national average. After passing the national exam, graduates start with an entry-level salary of $12-15 an hour.

Before attending Central Tech, Bradberry worked as an electrical utility contractor, jumping around from job to job. Bradberry said after completing the surg tech program he now has stability, with the national certification he can get a job anywhere he goes.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the outlook for surgical technologists jobs will rise by 30% through the year 2022.

“When I started the program I had no medical background, but now after completing the program I get to make a difference in my patients’ lives every day,” Bradberry said.

Central Tech’s surgical technology program is currently accepting applications for the fall semester and will conduct interviews in June with class beginning in August.