MOHAVE COUNTY–For the second year in a row, students studying in the Mohave Community College Surgical Technology program have earned the rare distinction of accomplishing a 100 percent pass rate.

This year’s pass rate for MCC far exceeds the national average pass rate of 77.9 percent, according to the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting, NBSTSA.

“I’m so happy for our students,” said Michelle Diaz, surgical technology director. “Our program is rigorous and we made it that way to prepare them to be the best surgical technologists in hospital operating rooms, and these pass rates show our students are on their way to great careers.”

Ben Price, chief executive officer of the NBSTSA, notified Diaz of the accomplishment with a congratulatory letter after the 2017 class of students passed the test.

“On behalf of the Board of Directors of NBSTSA, I would like to congratulate Mohave Community College for achieving a 100 percent graduate pass rate on the Certified Surgical Technologist (CST) Examination. Our sincerest congratulations on your success,” Price wrote in the letter.

MCC has two operating room class settings on campus, with cutting-edge technology that students will find in real operating rooms. Most students are hired immediately after graduating, according to Diaz.

The program is based on the Havasu campus, however, students outside of the Havasu area participate in the program because the first two semesters are held on campus twice a week.

Thanks to a partnership with local hospitals, students will than spend much of their time at clinical sites as well as participating in class online.

“The thing that is really nice for our students is we try to put them in clinical sites from the city in which they’re in,” said Diaz. “So, for instance, students from Yuma will do their rotation at Yuma Medical Center, those from Kingman and Bullhead City do them at hospitals in their towns.”

The average annual salary for surgical technologists is $46,310 and the U.S. Department of Labor reports the salary on the high end jumps to more than $72,000 per year.

The job outlook is also strong with the medical industry projected to need 12,600 more surgical technologist by 2026.

Applications for the MCC Surgical Technology program are still be accepted for the Fall semester.

For more information visit the MCC Surgical Technology webpage at www.Mohave.edu/SurgTech or call 1-866-MOHAVECC.

The MCC program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs in cooperation with the Accreditation Review Committee on Education in Surgical Technology, and provides the knowledge necessary to take the national certification examination for surgical technology.

SKILLED IN THE CLASSROOM (l-r): MCC Surgical Technology Students Samantha Engels and Yolanda Penry in the college’s mock operating room. Both graduated from the surgical technology program in May 2018. CONTRIBUTED/MCC