Danielle Okafor

Profile

Certified Surgical Technologist with 8 years of scrub experience across Level I trauma, cardiovascular, and robotic-assisted procedures at high-volume academic medical centers. Proficient in da Vinci Xi setup, instrument sterilization protocols, and multi-specialty case management averaging 12+ cases per shift. Recognized for reducing instrument count discrepancy rates by 34% through a team-led standardization initiative.

Work Experience

Lead Surgical TechnologistMar 2020 - Present

OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital, Columbus, OH

Scrubbed on 1,800+ annual cases spanning cardiac, thoracic, and robotic-assisted colorectal surgeries, maintaining a 99.6% correct instrument count rate across all procedures.
Led a 6-person scrub team in adopting a standardized back-table setup protocol that cut room turnover time by 11 minutes per case and increased OR throughput by 18%.
Mentored 4 new graduate surgical technologists through 90-day orientation, reducing onboarding errors by 28% compared to the prior cohort.

Surgical Technologist IIJun 2017 - Feb 2020

Mount Carmel East Medical Center, Columbus, OH

Performed first-scrub duties on orthopedic trauma and spine cases, supporting 9–14 procedures daily in a 28-OR facility with a 97.8% on-time case-start rate.
Collaborated with sterile processing to audit and reclassify 320 instrument trays, eliminating 14 recurring sterilization deficiencies cited in a Joint Commission survey.
Initiated a preference-card accuracy review that corrected 210 outdated surgeon cards, saving an estimated $42,000 annually in unused opened supplies.

Surgical Technologist IAug 2015 - May 2017

Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH

Scrubbed pediatric general, ENT, and urology cases under attending supervision, building proficiency across 6 surgical specialties within the first 14 months.
Assisted in implementing a timeout verification checklist adopted department-wide, contributing to a 12-month zero wrong-site surgery record.
Maintained sterile field integrity across 400+ pediatric cases with zero documented breaks in technique during annual competency evaluations.

Skills

Certified Surgical Technologist (CST) — NBSTSAda Vinci Xi Robotic System SetupSterile Field Maintenance & TechniqueInstrument Sterilization & SPD CoordinationMulti-Specialty Scrub: Cardiac, Ortho, Robotic, PediatricSurgeon Preference Card ManagementHIPAA Compliance & Patient Safety ProtocolsSurgical Counts (Sponge, Sharps, Instrument)Electronic Health Records: Epic OR Module

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