Information from Moultrie Technical College
TIFTON, GA. Moultrie Technical College's (MTC) Tifton Campus launched its credit program for Surgical Technology students in 2004 to train aspiring technologists, or scrubs, in the art of ensuring a sterile and safe surgical environment.
The College is taking things a step further with the recent opening of its Surgical Technology Academy Training (STAT) Lab in Tifton, designed specifically for training surgeons, surgical support staff, and medical device corporate sales personnel in new product applications and surgical techniques, such as total joint replacements.
According to the MTC Vice President of Economic Development, Dr. Shawn Utley, the College's administration saw a need for a training facility like this, because there is no such resource in the state of Georgia. MTC's STAT Lab will also be the only one within several hundred miles, as most facilities of this kind are located either on the West Coast or in the middle and northern regions of the United States.
To get this type of training, MTC Surgical Technology instructor Sherry King says, "Surgeons and other members of surgical teams have had to take time away from their jobs to go to other states. A two-day workshop may turn into an entire week away from the office. And time is money. The revenue is going to other states. Why not keep that revenue here in our state?"
Through the STAT Lab, King says Moultrie Tech will provide total course management through the use of anatomical parts and tissue from human cadavers and medical technologies to simulate a real-world operating room environment. Fresh specimens will be used to provide realistic training sessions where most devices will perform just as they would in living tissue.
"I've been in the medical field for 26 years. Technology is advancing at an incredible rate. It does that in the medical field just like it does in other areas," said King. "So what we are seeing is that procedures change so rapidly that our medical workers have to be able to get access to the new trainings so that they can provide the newest, latest technology to their patients in a safe manner."
MTC's team says the STAT Lab, located in the new Economic Development building on the Tifton Campus, contains eight fully-equipped surgical stations to accommodate up to three participants each, in addition to an instructor station with central audio and video to aid training throughout a live demonstration.
The master station is equipped with a versatile camera that can be placed at any point on the operating table. LCD screens can then show multiple angles to give the participants complete visualizations of the surgical procedure.
The lab also features integrated audio-visual media including three plasma screens, video cameras, audio reinforcement, and bi-directional teleconferencing for live demonstrations in the lab in connected conference rooms. A walk-in freezer and cooler are available to ensure proper specimen handling and storage, while a scrub sink is located outside the skills lab for hand washing and sterilization.
King says the College not only wants to be the provider of the facility, the specimens and the equipment but that it is also prepared to assist with catering and hotel accommodations during the trainings.
"We hope to serve surgeons from all over our area, the state and country…and eventually from all over the world," added King.
For more information about the MTC STAT Lab, contact Kelly Daniell at (229) 391-2635 or log on to http://statlab.mtced.com.
Surgical Technology program students Courtney McKee and Oscar Arvizu try out the new STAT Lab, which is now open to train surgeons and other medical personnel through short-term courses in Tifton
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