Surgical technicians prepare operating rooms before surgery by assembling and sterilizing surgical instruments and equipment. They also pass instruments to surgeons during surgery and ensure that everything needed is present, and they may help transfer patients to recovery rooms following surgery and clean and restock the operating room. Most work in hospitals, although much faster employment growth is expected in offices of physicians and in outpatient care centers, including ambulatory surgical centers. Median annual earnings in 2006 were $44,077. As the population ages and technology advances, the volume of surgeries will rise. This means plentiful employment opportunities for surgical technicians, with employment expected to grow by 24 percent between 2006 and 2016.