Becoming a Surgical Assistant

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Hi medical-surgical nurses,

I am not a nurse but want to become one. However, because just getting into NS can often require more time and effort than completing NS, I was looking into becoming a surgical assistant. Unfortunately, there are ZERO surgical assistant programs accredited by the AMA in my area. But I was surpised to learn that there a a good number of hybrid (online) programs out there. And they are fully accredited since they are all listed on the official website of the National Board for Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting, which accredits such programs. I've done some Google searches to learn more, but I keep finding articles about Surgical Techs, which are not the same thing.

I was just wondering if anyone can give me any insight into the job of a surgical assistant? Are they in demand? Is it harder to become one than an LPN or RN? How does their pay compare to those of nurses? Do I need a certificate or degree?

Thank you!

EDIT: To avoid confusion, this is the career I was interested in pursuing (http://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upload/mm/40/ah15-surgical-assistant.pdf ). I did not want anyone to get it confused with surgical technologist.

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