Meridian Institute of Surgical Assisting

PROSPECTIVE STUDENT GUIDE

 Hi! Thanks for visiting.  We’re excited and grateful for the opportunity to provide you with information about surgical assisting and help you choose the right surgical assisting program.

It seems that surgical assisting is the subject of much confusion.  In fact, people have so many misconceptions about surgical assisting that we decided to offer this Prospective Student  Guide so you can make an informed and intelligent decision when selecting a surgical assisting program.

Meridian Institute of Surgical Assisting wants to encourage you to educate yourself and to be aware that there is good and bad information out there. You should protect yourself from unethical companies which may try to take advantage of you. Arm yourself with education. Here’s what you should know now…

MISCONCEPTION #1:  It is necessary to be certified as a surgical technologist (CST) in order to become a Surgical First Assistant.

It is NOT necessary to be certified to become a Surgical First Assistant. Some programs will tell you that it is mandatory, but what you should know is that it is only mandatory for THEIR program. Each surgical assisting program is responsible for setting its own entrance requirements. At a minimum most programs require surgical scrub experience, college level Anatomy and Physiology, and current employment in a surgical environment.

MISCONCEPTION #2:  The Program that offers the lowest price is the Program you should join.

Maybe — but not always.  Here are two important points to consider.

Point #1:  The price you see offered may not be for the service you want. In order for some programs to offer you a lower price, they must then also offer you less than what another program can provide. You should make sure that the program incorporates three vital components: didactic course work, a live hands on skill lab, and a complete multispecialty externship.  If a course does not include all of these components, then you as a student are on the losing end.  Many programs cut some of these elements out of their program in order to lower tuition prices.

Point #2: The price you see advertised may not be the price you pay.

Some surgical assisting programs offer a low tuition rate of “$2995.00”, but fail to mention all of  the hidden costs, such as Lab fees, book fees, etc. Sadly, some programs use the old bait and switch tactic, and only after you enroll do you find out that the final cost of the program is substantially higher than what you were originally led to believe.  You should be wary of programs that do not have a consistent tuition policy and are constantly offering half price or reduced tuition.  Tuition should be the SAME for all students.  Tuition prices should not be adjusted every other week just to reel in students as an attempt to improve bottom-line profits for an institution. 

MISCONCEPTION #3:  One surgical assisting program is as good as another.

FALSE! First and foremost be sure that your program is CAAHEP-accredited; otherwise, you are wasting your time and money. The only way that you can become certified as a surgical assistant is through completion of a CAAHEP-accredited program. Check into the actual training provided and the institution resources.  As a prospective student make sure that the program is being offered by a legitimate and accredited institution.  Merely just holding programmatic accreditation such as CAAHEP may not protect the student from unethical practices. Legitimate institutions should hold institutional accreditation from a United States Department of Education approved accrediting body.

MISCONCEPTION #4:  All training is real.

Beware of programs that parse words to make their training sound as if it meets the same standards as one that provides training on an actual living subject. While all training might be “real”, can they say it’s actual?? The best possible training is obviously the actual hands-on experience of operating on an ACTUAL living subject. Don’t be fooled into thinking that any other training can be perceived as anything other than less than the BEST. Why do automotive students work on ACTUAL cars and ACTUAL engines, cosmetology students work on ACTUAL hair (people, not dolls),  massage therapy students give ACTUAL massages.  The BEST training is ACTUAL hands-on training!

MISCONCEPTION #5:  The program is CAAHEP-accredited so I am eligible to sit for any national certification exam.

False! CAAHEP accreditation is not enough in and of itself to allow graduates to sit for all national certification exams. If a program is not recognized or authorized by all certification organizations an immediate flag should go up! Why? What is wrong with this program? There are a few programs that will not inform you until after you invested all your time and hard earned money that you aren’t eligible for all national certifications. Their program, while being accredited, still will not allow their graduates to meet the eligibility requirements for all certifications.

MISCONCEPTION #6:  This program offers expert training to prepare you for the future.

Many programs make bold claims …. They “will transform your skills that will take your career to another level” when, in reality, many students of these programs find it necessary to be retrained even after completion of their program. They were promised the moon and given the shaft. It’s all too often that students are lured in by false claims and misleading advertisement. NO PROGRAM CAN FULFILL A PROMISE THAT YOU WILL BE AN EXPERT AFTER ONE WEEK OF HANDS- ON TRAINING.

 

 

The only way you can make an intelligent decision is to have all the facts you need! Don’t take our word for it; don’t take their word for it. Research, do your homework, and when you are done we are confident that you will make the right choice…the BEST choice… the ONLY choice is MERIDIAN INSTITUTE OF SURGICAL ASSISTING!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why do we feel that Meridian is the best choice for you?

 

#1. Here at Meridian we provide training that is unique only to Meridian and can’t be obtained at any other Surgical First Assisting Program. We believe it truly is the Gold Standard for surgical assisting training unlike any program of its kind! Meridian provides a state-of-the-art USDA-certified lab facility that offers you ONE OF A KIND training! At Meridian you will receive REAL training on an ACTUAL LIVING subject--no training on foam and rubber or hands in a box in a classroom or a hotel room as with other programs. At Meridian you will be rewarded with a real operating room setting, performing REAL operating room procedures on a REAL LIVING SUBJECT!!  All procedures are performed on living anesthetized pigs.  This is as close as you can come to actually being in the operating room.

#2. Meridian welcomes any student who has operating room experience, college-level Anatomy and Physiology, and is employed. These are the only prerequisites for entry into our Surgical First Assisting Program. It is NOT necessary that you be a CST to enroll in our program.

#3. Here at Meridian we fully disclose everything UPFRONT. We provide an ALL-INCLUSIVE price with NO Hidden Costs or FEES! Other programs will attempt to lure you in with advertised low tuition rates and then, only after enrollment, will you discover all the hidden fees, i.e. lab fees, books, etc., that will end up costing you the same if not more!!

#4. We labor to provide the utmost in friendly and dedicated service to our students, who are considered family, and as such we act on their behalf. Never will we charge extra for administrative tasks that should be naturally afforded to our students. Other programs charge hundreds, if not thousands of extra dollars to facilitate agreements for clinicals--at Meridian that extensive effort and labor is FREE!!

#5. Meridian is NSAA approved. Graduates of Meridian are eligible for EITHER or both the CFA® or the CSA® exam. If a program is not authorized for students to sit for the CSA® exam, a RED FLAG should go up immediately and you should seriously question WHY??

#6. Meridian is dually accredited--programmatically by  CAAHEP and institutionally by ABHES which is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Meridian’s academics far exceed that of the industry standards, our Applied Sciences Lab is truly head and shoulders above any other training on the market today, and we have a great working relationship with hundreds of hospitals throughout the country for your externship phase. We pride ourselves in providing the best training available.

#7. YOU ARE MERIDIAN! Your success is our success and we strive to make you the best assistant that you can be! You will NEVER have the need or find it necessary to be retrained. Meridian has retrained numerous graduates from other programs. Unfortunately these students invested countless time and money only to find out that the education they received was dramatically inferior and wasn’t anything close to what they had been promised. This will NEVER happen at Meridian and no other proprietary surgical assisting can make a claim that they have retrained Meridian graduates.

#8.  Here at Meridian we are the nation’s leader in surgical assisting training. No other program can offer what Meridian can so their only option is to dramatically lower their costs to compete. Are you willing to sacrifice or risk your education simply for a lower cost? Remember…you get what you pay for!