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June 27, 2009 | Show All

South Carolina State Assembly

THE LAW

TITLE 44

CHAPTER 7.

HOSPITALS, TUBERCULOSIS CAMPS AND HEALTH SERVICES DISTRICTS

ARTICLE 1.

GENERAL PROVISIONS

SECTION 44-7-380. Surgical technology and operating room circulators; definitions; requirements to practice; exceptions

(A) As used in this section, “surgical technology” means intraoperative surgical patient care that involves:

(1) preparing the operating room for surgical procedures by ensuring that surgical equipment is functioning properly and safely;

(2) preparing the operating room and the sterile field for surgical procedures by preparing sterile supplies, instruments, and equipment using sterile technique;

(3) anticipating the needs of the surgical team based on knowledge of human anatomy and pathophysiology and how they relate to the surgical patient and the patient’s surgical procedure; and

(4) as directed within the sterile field in an operating room setting, performing tasks including:

(a) passing supplies, equipment, or instruments;

(b) sponging or suctioning an operative site;

(d) transferring fluids or drugs;

(e) holding retractors; and

(f) assisting in counting sponges, needles, supplies, and instruments.

(B)(1) A person may not practice surgical technology in a health care facility unless the person meets one of the following requirements:

(a) has successfully completed an accredited educational program for surgical technologists and holds and maintains the Surgical Technologist Certification administered by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting, or its successor; however, upon completion of an accredited education program for surgical technologists, graduates may practice for up to three months before completing certification by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting, or its successor;

(b) has completed an appropriate training program for surgical technology in the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard or in the United States Public Health Service;

(c) provides evidence that the person was employed to practice surgical technology in a health care facility in this State prior to January 1, 2008; or

(d) is in the service of the federal government, to the extent the person is performing duties related to that service.

(2) A person qualified to practice as a surgical technologist pursuant to subsection (B)(1) remains qualified to practice regardless of a break in practice provided the continuing education required in subsection (D) is current.

(C) A person who does not meet the requirements of this section, may practice surgical technology in a health care facility if:

(1) after a diligent and thorough effort has been made, the health care facility is unable to employ a sufficient number of persons who meet the requirements of this section; and

(2) the health care facility makes a written record of its efforts made pursuant to item (1) and retains the record at the health care facility.

(D) A person who qualifies to practice surgical technology in a health care facility pursuant to subsection (B)(1)(a), (b), or (c) annually must complete fifteen hours of continuing education to remain qualified for employment.

(E) A health care facility that employs a person to practice surgical technology shall verify that the person meets the continuing education requirements of subsection (D) or that the person has held and maintained the Surgical Technologist Certification as required in subsection (B)(1)(a).

(F) A health care facility shall supervise each person employed by the health care facility to practice surgical technology according to the health care facility’s policies and procedures to ensure that the person competently performs delegated tasks intraoperatively according to this section or other applicable provisions of law.

(G) This section does not prohibit a person licensed under another provision of law from performing surgical technology tasks or functions if the person is acting within the scope of his or her license.

SECTION 44-7-385. Requirements for serving as operating room circulator.

(A) As used in this section, an “operating room circulator” means a registered nurse trained, educated, or experienced in perioperative nursing who is responsible for coordinating the nursing care and safety needs of a patient in the operating room and who also meets the needs of the operating room team members during surgery.

(B) An operating room circulator in a health care facility must be a licensed registered nurse educated, trained, and experienced in perioperative nursing.

(C) A surgical technologist may not serve as the circulator in the operating room of a health care facility; however, a person who is employed to practice surgical technology in a health care facility may assist in the performance of circulating duties:

(1) consistent with the person’s education, training, and experience; and

(2) as assigned and supervised by a registered nurse circulator who must be present in the operating room for the duration of the surgical procedure.

DISCLAIMER

The South Carolina Legislative Council is offering access to the unannotated South Carolina Code of Laws on the Internet as a service to the public. The unannotated South Carolina Code on the General Assembly's website is now current through the 2008 session. The unannotated South Carolina Code, consisting only of Code text and numbering, may be copied from this website at the reader's expense and effort without need for permission.

The Legislative Council is unable to assist users of this service with legal questions. Also, legislative staff cannot respond to requests for legal advice or the application of the law to specific facts. Therefore, to understand and protect your legal rights, you should consult your own private lawyer regarding all legal questions.

While every effort was made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the unannotated South Carolina Code available on the South Carolina General Assembly's website, the unannotated South Carolina Code is not official, and the state agencies preparing this website and the General Assembly are not responsible for any errors or omissions which may occur in these files. Only the current published volumes of the South Carolina Code of Laws Annotated and any pertinent acts and joint resolutions contain the official version.

Please note that the Legislative Council is not able to respond to individual inquiries regarding research or the features, format, or use of this website. However, you may notify Legislative Printing, Information and Technology Systems at LPITS@scstatehouse.net regarding any apparent errors or omissions in content of Code sections on this website, in which case LPITS will relay the information to appropriate staff members of the South Carolina Legislative Council for investigation.

Posted At : 10:00 AM. | Posted By : SC_AST.WEBMASTER08 | Link |

February 2, 2009 | Show All

South Carolina State Assembly

South Carolina Surgical Technologist Law

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: If DHEC will be "policing" the hospital files for compliance with the 15 CEU per year - "who is the contact at DHEC?

Hospitals will not need to do any extra reporting to DHEC, and won't have to fill out any forms or send in CE reports to DHEC as a part of this new law. "Policing" is done as a part of the normal, regular hospital licensure review process. As a part of the normal licensure review process, employee files may be checked, and in addition to the things they have traditionally checked, they may check these files for the presence of documentation of the continuing education as required by the new law.

Question: Is there formal paperwork that DHEC will provide for the hospital?

There shouldn't be any special paperwork necessary, because the monitoring is done as a part of the regular hospital license review process.

Question: Is there a guideline on the type of CEU that the hospitals must provide for the ST?

What the law says in simple terms is this:

A person who qualifies to practice surgical technology in a health care

facility annually must complete fifteen hours of continuing education to

remain qualified for employment.

A health care facility that employs a person to practice surgical technology

shall verify that the person meets the continuing education requirements or

that the person has held and maintained the CST credential.

The law is simply stating that everyone employed as a surgical technologist must complete 15 hours of continuing education annually to remain eligible for employment. What that means is that everyone employed as a surgical technologist must complete 15 hours of continuing education to remain qualified or employment, and that each healthcare facility must verify that its surgical technologist employees has done so. Where the continuing education comes from is not specified, so it could be AST approved continuing education courses, hospital in-services, AORN workshops, or any other type of appropriate education.

The law is that the continuing education has to be done, but not about what it has to be, it's not

prescriptive in this area. It should be noted, though, for Certified Surgical Technologists, that

maintaining the CST credential is accepted under this law as proof of completion of the appropriate continuing education. Individuals who hold the CST credential must, according to the rules of the

National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting, complete AST approved continuing

education, but as far as the State of South Carolina is concerned, having documentation in the employee me of continuing certification meets the continuing education requirement.

Question: Can CEU be hospital based mandatory in-services?

Yes, see above for grandfathered (non-certified individuals) For CSTs, AST Continuing Education

Participant Policy applies. Hospital in-services are, at the time of the writing of this document, accepted

under those policies. The AST Continuing Education Participant Policy booklet contains a lot of important information, but in short it states that CE credits can be earned in lecture, clinical demonstration, hospital sponsored functions, independent home-study courses, writing for publications, and instruction of health professionals. Hospital orientation is not accepted for CE credits for renewing CSTs.

Question: Can CE be anything AORN sponsors?

The law simply states that individuals employed as surgical technologists must complete 15 hours of continuing education annually to remain eligible for employment. It doesn't specify where the continuing education must come from. Individuals who are maintaining their CST credential will want to complete

AST approved continuing education in order to maintain the CST.

Question: Can CE be hospital in-services?

Yes.

How can I become a CE provider for AST so this can be two-fold for the non-certified ST & the CST's?

Contact the Education Department at AST at 800-637-7433 for more information, or go to the web site at www.ast.org and choose "Education."

If the non-certified ST takes a break in their career, it is my understanding that they can re-gain entry into the OR by proving that they

maintained 15 CE per year. - Do these CE credits have to be AST approved?

An individual who had already worked as a surgical technologist prior to January 1, 2008 would be able to re-enter the profession by showing that they had completed any continuing education acceptable to

DHEC. Individuals who entered the profession after that date, and therefore were required to hold the CST credential could also re-enter the profession by completing any continuing education acceptable to DHEC, but they also would need to have maintained their CST credential in order to be eligible to work.

Question: What has been gained by the passage of this new law?

AST's legislative mission and goal has long been "Graduation from an accredited program in surgical technology and holding / maintaining the Certified Surgical Technologist credential administered by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA) as a condition of employment."

This law accomplishes that goal, while recognizing those individuals who have long practiced in the

state and allowing them to continue their careers uninterrupted

It is a simple regulation that accomplishes much for the profession, including the definition within state law of surgical technology as a real profession for the first time in South Carolina, along with education and credentialing standards.

Additionally, the passage of this law has given momentum to the concept of individual professions

working in concert to collaborate towards the enactment of laws that benefit operating room patients. As of the date of the writing of this document, some 22 State Assemblies of AST are at some phase of the process of following suit, building on the language that was passed in South Carolina.

If you have any questions about how the law will work, or how it will affect you or those you work with, please call AST at 303-325-2500. We'll be happy to help.

This document will be maintained and updated on the AST web site at Please check there for updates with responses as any new questions arise.

Note: The Association of Surgical Technologists provides this information on an educational basis and does not offer legal advice. AST recommends that individuals or health care facilities consult with their attorneys for answers to legal questions.

Posted At : 7:09 PM. | Posted By : SC_AST.WEBMASTER08 | Link |

South Carolina State Assembly

South Carolina - Surgical Technologist Law
Quick Facts

What the new law does:

• Officially recognizes our profession for the first time in state law
• Creates pathway to entry to the profession for NEW surgical technologists
• Protects the jobs of all surgical technologists that exist now
• Protects patients by requiring hospitals to hire surgical technologists that are graduates of accredited programs and hold and maintain the CST credential
• Allows surgical technologists to assist at circulating duties

The new law does not:

• Change eligibility for the CST examination - if you are eligible to sit for the exam now, you will be eligible for the foreseeable future
• Force any surgical technologist that's working or in school now to get certified in order to work in the state
• Force any individual grandfathered in (working now) to stay at the same hospital forever
• Force anyone to go back to school for any reason

What you need to know, what you need to do:

• The law went into effect January 1, 2008
• If you are working now, or have worked at any time as a surgical technologist prior to January 1, 2008, you are grandfathered and can work for the rest of your life
• If you are currently a student, you will have three months after graduation during which you can work without being certified
• If you take a break from your career, you can always come back, so long as you keep your continuing education current
• Everyone will need to begin to earn 15 hours of continuing education per year. Keeping your CST current (if you are a CST) will cover this.
• There is no paperwork, nothing to file with the state, no board to apply to. No action is required on your part

Who supported (or stayed neutral) on this legislation:

• The South Carolina State Assembly of Surgical Technologists
• The Association of Surgical Technologists
• South Carolina Nurses Association
• Association of Operating Room Nurses
• South Carolina Hospital Association
• South Carolina Medical Association
• South Carolina DHEC
• South Carolina LLR
• South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners
• South Carolina Board of Nursing
• South Carolina Comprehensive Technical Board

Posted At : 6:18 PM. | Posted By : SC_AST.WEBMASTER08 | Link |

August 22, 2008 | Show All

Association of Surgical Technologist

National Surgical Technologist Week

2008

September 21-27, 2008

Midlands Technical College; columbia, south carolina