How to hire an assistant-at-surgery

How to hire an assistant-at-surgery, step by step

Here's a step-by-step assistant-at-surgery hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an assistant-at-surgery job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new assistant-at-surgery
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an assistant-at-surgery do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring an assistant-at-surgery, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   An assistant-at-surgery's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, assistants-at surgery from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   The following list breaks down different types of assistants-at surgery and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Assistant-At-Surgery	Description	Hourly rate
   Assistant-At-Surgery	Medical assistants complete administrative and clinical tasks in the offices of physicians, hospitals, and other healthcare facilities. Their duties vary with the location, specialty, and size of the practice.	$14-103

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Surgical Procedures
   • HIPAA
   • CPR
   • Direct Patient Care
   • Vital Signs
   • Infection Control
   • DR
   • Scheduling Appointments
   • Catheter
   • Diagnostic Tests
   • Injections
   • General Surgery
   • Front Desk

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Submit requests for authorization for surgical procedures and office appointments from patients' insurance carriers.
   • Perform EKGs and phlebotomy as needed.
   • Assist doctors with procedures, patient triage/telephone triage.
   • Participate in hospital triage with medical and surgical cases.
   • Make calls to pharmacies and other medical offices to give or obtain patient information in accordance with HIPAA.
   • Perform clinical tasks such as taking and recording vitals, operating EKG machine, performing finger sticks, and patient preparation.

   More assistant-at-surgery duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the assistant-at-surgery job description is a good way to get more applicants. An assistant-at-surgery salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for an assistant-at-surgery in North Dakota may be lower than in Massachusetts, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level assistant-at-surgery. Additionally, an assistant-at-surgery with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average assistant-at-surgery salary

   $81,630yearly

   $39.25 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level assistant-at-surgery salary

   $30,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 27, 2025

   Average assistant-at-surgery salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$120,618	$58
   2	New York	$112,958	$54
   3	Arizona	$102,229	$49
   4	California	$93,286	$45
   5	Nevada	$89,370	$43
   6	Hawaii	$80,581	$39
   7	Texas	$79,698	$38
   8	Pennsylvania	$77,301	$37
   9	Mississippi	$68,459	$33
   10	Virginia	$62,094	$30
   11	Ohio	$61,980	$30
   12	Illinois	$55,848	$27
   13	North Carolina	$55,407	$27
   14	Georgia	$54,166	$26
   15	Tennessee	$52,403	$25
   16	Florida	$52,128	$25
   17	Oklahoma	$51,777	$25
   18	Wisconsin	$51,596	$25
   19	Arkansas	$47,805	$23
   20	Alabama	$46,173	$22

   Average assistant-at-surgery salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Physician Affiliate Group of New York	$161,125	$77.46	2
   2	Methodist Hospital Of Henderson, Kentucky	$133,721	$64.29	6
   3	Memorial Healthcare System	$130,500	$62.74	7
   4	Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center	$128,730	$61.89	3
   5	Northwell Health	$124,129	$59.68	135
   6	Baptist Health	$114,671	$55.13	45
   7	UMiami Health System	$111,436	$53.58	20
   8	Huntsville Hospital	$110,855	$53.30	18
   9	National Medical Association	$109,299	$52.55
   10	Norman Regional Health System	$105,460	$50.70	1
   11	Brigham and Women's Hospital	$99,675	$47.92	109
   12	University of Illinois Springfield	$97,674	$46.96	4
   13	Columbia University in the City of New York	$95,520	$45.92	1
   14	Massachusetts General Hospital	$94,458	$45.41
   15	Staten Island Academy	$90,058	$43.30
   16	Stanford University	$84,207	$40.48	9
   17	Emory University	$83,301	$40.05	19
   18	Cleveland Clinic	$83,128	$39.97	218
   19	Tenet Healthcare	$74,788	$35.96	197
   20	Mercy Children's Hospital	$72,948	$35.07	4

4. Writing an assistant-at-surgery job description

   An assistant-at-surgery job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of an assistant-at-surgery job description:

   Assistant-at-surgery job description example

   The Division of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Stanford University seeks a **board certified, or board eligible, otolaryngologist who has completed, or is currently in, fellowship training in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery,** to join the division as **Assistant or Associate Professor in the University Medical Line or the University Tenure Line** .
   
   The successful applicant should be eligible for and maintain certification from the American Board of Otolaryngology as well as the American Board of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery. We expect the successful candidate to develop a clinical practice within the Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Division within the Department and located at the School of Medicine. The successful applicant should have qualifications commensurate with the expectation for a commitment to an academic career in facial plastic surgery. As such, the candidate should have a track record of publication and evidence that they will be able to take advantage of the basic science and/or clinical research opportunities in facial plastic surgery at Stanford.
   
   + The predominant criterion for appointment in the **University Tenure Line** is a major commitment to research and teaching.
   
   + The major criteria for appointment for faculty in the **University Medical Line** shall be excellence in the overall mix of clinical care, clinical teaching, scholarly activity that advances clinical medicine, and institutional service appropriate to the programmatic need the individual is expected to fulfill.
   
   Academic rank and line will be determined by the qualifications and experience of the successful candidate.
   Applications will be reviewed beginning October 15, 2021, and accepted until position is filled.
   
   _Stanford is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Stanford welcomes applications from all who would bring additional dimensions to the University's research, teaching and clinical missions._
   
   The Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, School of Medicine, and Stanford University value faculty who are committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion. **Candidates may optionally include as part of their research or teaching statement a brief discussion of how their work will further these ideals.**
   
   Please submit CV, a brief candidate statement of interest and the names of three references to

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right assistant-at-surgery for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your assistant-at-surgery job on Zippia to find and attract quality assistant-at-surgery candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit assistants-at surgery, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new assistant-at-surgery

   Once you've found the assistant-at-surgery candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new assistant-at-surgery. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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