Mon Health Medical Center Hires First Surgical Technician Extern to its Outpatient Surgery Team

Cheyanne Palmer grew up near Hundred, West Virginia and currently lives in Blacksville. She graduated from Clay-Battelle High School in 2020 and spent her junior and senior year attending MTEC where she earned her Medical Assistant and Phlebotomy Technician certifications. Palmer originally had plans to further her career and become a Registered Nurse, but eventually switched gears when she applied for the Surgical Technologist Extern Program and gained valuable experience at Mon Health Medical Center.

“Mon Health’s Human Resources team came to present the extern opportunity to my class at MTEC. I decided to join the program because I had a great experience during my clinical rotation at the Outpatient Surgery Center and felt like this was the perfect opportunity for me to join the team and allow me to have job security while still in school,” said Palmer. “The interactive aspect of the program has been great. I was able to get hands-on experience during my clinicals and I continued to expand that experience through the program and my work now.”

During her time working as an extern, Palmer rotated through the Center for Outpatient Surgery at Mon Health and not only gained valuable experience, but also found a great start to her career with the support of her new coworkers.

“Everyone at Mon Health was so welcoming and helpful during my extern program,” said Palmer. “During my clinical rotation, I felt connected with the staff and the environment was different than the other rotations I had experienced. I felt like this was a great fit for me to start my career as a new graduate.”

Palmer is now working as a Certified Surgical Technician with Mon Health’s Center for Outpatient Surgery. As the first graduate to be hired from the program, she has some advice for those who are considering similar opportunities.

“It may be intimidating to step out to do something new, but I’m so grateful I decided to further my career and better myself and my future,” said Palmer. “It will be hard at times but in the end, it is very rewarding. My best advice to someone interested in this type of opportunity is to take the chance. Whether it’s going back to school or starting a new job, your options are wide open. I am thankful that I was given the chance to participate in this amazing opportunity and I’m excited to see how much I continue to grow and expand my knowledge at Mon Health.”

Interested in learning about careers and opportunities at Mon Health? Visit MonHealth.com/Careers.