Surg Tech vs LPN

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hey there everyone! i finally became a member, and this is my first post!

i am stuck in-between whether to peruse surgical tech or get my lpn. my ultimate goal as of right now would probably be nursing, unless i ended up loving surge tech so much i didn't want to do anything else which is deff. a possibility. but my ultimate goal could change also. i really don't know. something about being a surge tech is so amazing to me... and if later i decided to go into nursing i would have the experience and knowledge of the or so i could be an or nurse (which if i did nursing, i would want something exciting like that - probably for pediatrics)

there is a community college near me (ivy tech) & for either of the lpn & surg tech program they require the same general & pre reqs so i was wondering if i were to get my surge tech and then later decide to get my lpn, would i be able to go back to ivy tech and (if i got accepted into the lpn program) start core nursing classes right away since i would have already completed the required classes from my surge tech program? if anyone knows the answer, or someone who has done this especially, please talk to me!

i appreciate it everyone! (:

thank you so much.

comment here.

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Emily,

I am so excited that you are thinking about the OR. I was an OR nurse while I was working and loved it. The OR is such an exciting place to be. I think that ultimately you should consider becoming an RN. In the OR you can circulate and scrub. There is always a need for OR nurses.

I think that if the OR is something that you are already interested in then you will fall in love with it if you become a surgical tech. Do what interests you, but think ahead too. Being a surgical tech is kind of a dead end, being a RN is not.

Good Luck!

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What exactly do you mean when you say they can circulate? I'm not too sure what that means :/ but thanks for your reply hun!! The thing is, if i finish all my required general and pre reqs I will apply for the LPN, but if I cant get in that round I will try to do surg tech in the mean time and then re apply the next available time until I hopefully make it into the LPN prorgam.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

The surgical technician is rather limited in career mobility. They are employable in operating rooms and ambulatory surgery centers, but that's about it.

The LPN is employable in a range of settings, such as hospitals, dialysis centers, nursing homes, clinics, doctors' offices, hospices, home health agencies, psychiatric facilities, and group homes. There are even a handful of LPNs who work as surgical scrub technicians in hospitals and outpatient surgery suites. My classmate is an LPN who works in the OR as a scrub tech at a major hospital in a Midwestern city.

This is just my honest opinion: you want as much career mobility as possible in this slumping economy that we're in right now. You might need a way to earn an income if you cannot land a job in an operating room or surgery floor as a surgical technician.

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Do an informal investigation of job opportunities yourself on the employment websites. Compare job listings for LPN versus those for surgical technician. You will get an idea of whether it is a wise idea to pursue the ST over an LPN license. What good will it be to be a ST if you can't work as one? I believe that you will find more opportunities for employment for an LPN and you can decide accordingly.

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Thank you. I think you all are very right (:

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

Surge techs got it going on in the OR thats for sure but I don't think there is really anywhere to go from there and the pay isn't great, imo. LPNs make about the same amount but if you are thinking about moving on to your RN that will make a big difference in career opportunities and pay. Good luck.

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The Circulating RN is the person who interviews the patient before the surgery, they are responsible for positioning the patient, obtaining all meds to be used on the surgical field, they are responsible for all documentation which is done on the computer these days, they make sure that counts of all necessary surgical instruments and sponges etc. are done, they give report to the PACU etc. etc. etc.

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