Surgical technicians — also referred to as surgical technologists, operating room technicians, or scrubs — provide valuable support in an important health care role that doesn’t get as much public attention as other jobs. However, they’re still a vital part of a surgical team.

It’s the job of a surgical technician to provide support and assistance to surgeons and nurses during operations. Under the supervision of medical staff, they perform a variety of mainly preparatory tasks, including organizing the operating room and making sure everything’s ready for the surgeon to perform the operation.

A lot of work goes into setting up the operating room before it’s used during a procedure. The surgical technician is responsible for setting out the tools the surgeon will use, both sterile and non-sterile, and performing a quality check to ensure everything’s working properly. Additionally, a surgical technician will often work directly with the patient to clean and disinfect the area where the surgeon will make the incision, as well as transport the patient from their room to the operating room. The technician also assists the surgical staff in putting on their gowns and gloves and acts as an assistant during the surgery. It’s the technician’s job to keep things running smoothly during the procedure, which allows the entire surgical team to work together well and to carry out difficult procedures more easily.

Although the surgical technician isn’t the highest-ranking member of the surgical team, they are the one responsible for overseeing many areas before and during the surgery. A qualified surgical technician will need to have expert knowledge of infections and how to prevent them, or what are called aseptic techniques, as well as a thorough understanding of human anatomy, illness and treatment, and surgical tools and methods used in operational procedures.

During the surgery, the surgical technician might also be required to operate a sterilizer or other machine used to clean instruments, and also be required to pass the instruments to the surgeon. It’s also possible for surgical technicians to achieve advanced certification as surgical first assistants. In this role, the technician works under the direction of the surgeon to control the patient’s blood flow and prevent hemorrhage during the operation.

Although it can seem to outsiders that the surgical technician is just a pair of hands designed to pass a few tools to a surgeon, in reality, the role requires a good deal of training and knowledge, as well as a desire to work directly in the medical field. It’s an assisting role, yes, but in this case, that makes it just as important as any other member of the team.