Credentials
CSA - this term shall apply to all persons who join the Association as a qualified Candidate Member and who successfully pass the Certification Examination.
The term “Certified Surgical Assistant” is a continuous membership classification and may be used for as long as a member maintains continuing education credits for his/her certification and is in good standing with the Association.
Certified Surgical Assistants shall have full voting rights.
Scope of Practice
Surgical Assistants assist physicians in surgery and may perform specific significant surgical tasks under “professional supervision”. (Significant surgical tasks include, but are not limited to: opening and closing surgical sites, exposure of the surgical site, harvesting grafts, dissecting tissue, removing tissue, implanting devices, altering tissues).
Surgical Assistants may, under “professional supervision”, perform specific significant tasks which include, but are not limited to, applying and removing splints/casts, placing Foley catheters, IV’s, and arterial lines, administering local anesthesia, and other such procedures as requested and necessary.
Regulated States
There are several states with regulatory legislation regarding Surgical Assistant practice in the United States. The states are listed below along with references to the bills that created the regulations, and web links to the governmental body that regulates the profession in those states.
