Surgical Technology Program Receives Accreditation

June 1, 2017

Hudson Valley Community College's Surgical Technology program, which offers the only degree and certificate of its kind in the region, has received accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP).

The college established the degree and certificate programs in 2015 in response to a state law that mandated that all new surgical technologists graduate from an accredited program before pursuing their licensing exam. Hudson Valley offers one of only four such programs within the SUNY system.

The 46-credit Surgical Technology certificate program and 64-credit associate degree program expanded its incoming class this past fall from 20 to 26 students. Successful graduates will be eligible to take the Certified Surgical Technology exam through the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA).

Surgical technologists prepare operating rooms, arrange equipment and help surgeons during a range of surgical procedures. They also are responsible for ensuring aseptic conditions in the operating room, as well as cleaning and preparing all instruments that might be needed in an operation.

The Surgical Technology degree and certificate are headed up by program director Shawn Jeune, a registered nurse and certified surgical technologist. The program is housed in the college's Nursing Department, headed by interim Department Chair Martha Desmond.

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Founded in 1953, Hudson Valley Community College offers more than 80 degree and certificate programs in four schools: Business; Engineering and Industrial Technologies; Health Science; and Liberal Arts and Sciences; and an Educational Opportunity Center for academic and career training. One of 30 community colleges in the State University of New York system, it has an enrollment of nearly 11,500 students and is known as a leader in distance learning initiatives and workforce training. Hudson Valley has more than 75,000 alumni.