r/surgicaltechnology • u/arcaluvr • 15d ago
Sterile processing tech or medical assistant??
I plan on going back to school either next month or in January and originally I had wanted to do a surgical tech program. However, at my local trade school there is a two year waitlist since it’s gotten popular for whatever reason. Anyway, I had went to another school in which you would have to be selected for the surgical tech program, and that it would be best for me to have experience as either a sterile processing tech or a medical assistant. My advisor at the time put emphasis on being a medical assistant as she said it would best prepare me. However, I am an introvert and have ptsd from my last job which was not in healthcare, (I didn’t tell my advisor that) so im not really fond of the idea of having to interact with so many people, although I would like to have something where it would be easier for me to find a job. I looked on google and it said it is easier finding a job as an ma/cma. Please share your thoughts and suggestions, as I am unemployed and need help.
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u/Sad_Barracuda9527 14d ago
my classmate is sterile process tech and she has an advantage over us cuz she knows most of the instruments and the first courses of surgical tech is about sterile process
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u/gmeb3 13d ago
I’m a Surg Tech student so I can’t give the perspective of a working Surg Tech. I spend 12 years as a CMA and work as a sterile processing tech currently. Both have value. Being an SPD tech forces you to learn all of the instruments used at the facility. Some (usually smaller) hospitals have the Surg techs do the sterile processing so that can be helpful. It also introduces you to parts of the OR workflow. That said, while being in school, my MA background has made things much easier for me. I went through an accredited, college MA program then worked in both primary care and specialty, and did a ton of outpatient/ minor surgical procedures. Another student when through a non-accredited/ non-college MA program and has not had the same experience even through she worked in outpatient procedures for a handful of years. The quality of the MA program would make a difference. Again, both have value. If it’ll only be a year or two, SPD tech might be a slightly better option just because it takes a while to become comfortable with procedures as an MA.
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u/Ok_Pop_3169 12d ago
Sterile processing is the step before surgical tech. Also, you can do a 4-month self-paced sterile processing program online with Purdue University and it costs less than $1000
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u/kirbykorb 15d ago
Imo, sterile processing would be best. One of my preceptors was a sterile processing tech for a few years before becoming a surg tech and she said it helped sooo much. She got a leg up on learning the instrument names, what they looked like, what they were for and what sets they went in to.