Mayo Clinic Hospital — Rochester is an extensive outpatient complex with substantial research and education facilities. This Mayo Clinic site is among the largest, most advanced medical centers in the world.

You spend time in the Mayo Clinic Multidisciplinary Simulation Centers and human anatomy lab, as well as clinical time in the surgical suites of Mayo Clinic Hospital — Rochester and the same-day surgical suites in the Gonda Building. Opportunities to rotate through Mayo Clinic Health System sites will be expected based on availability.

Mayo Clinic Hospital — Rochester has one of the largest surgical suites in the nation with more than 120 operating rooms. Each year, Mayo Clinic surgeons perform nearly 50,000 surgical procedures — about 200 a day — at the hospital's two campuses. The vast number and type of surgeries, in combination with a highly educated faculty, make Mayo Clinic an ideal educational setting for students in surgical training programs.

Sarah Penkava, Program Director

Sarah Penkava started her nursing career in 1998 at Regions Hospital in St. Paul, Minnesota. Her first experience at Mayo Clinic (2002) was in surgery, specifically with pediatric airways in ENT, ophthalmology, plastic surgery, and oral surgery. Ms. Penkava went on to receive her Master’s in Nursing in 2009.

In 2012, the Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences approved a new program to educate and train Surgical Assistants. Sarah Penkava is the program director and has been with the Surgical First Assistant Program since its inception. She is a Silver Quality Fellow (Mayo Clinic Quality Academy) and received her Instructor of Nursing in 2014. Ms. Penkava is an active member of National Surgical Assistant Association (NSAA) , the Association of PeriOperative Registered Nurses (AORN), and the Association of Surgical Education (ASE).

Helga Olson 

Helga Olson joined the faculty in 2012. Ms. Olson received her B.A. in counseling psychology and her M.A in liberal sciences from the University of Findlay and her graduate certification in surgical assisting from Eastern Virginal Medical School. Upon graduation from EVMS, she was hired at Mayo Clinic in the Cardiovascular Division in 2009. Ms. Olson continued her education and completed a master’s degree in clinical anatomy from New York College.

Ms. Olson teaches and coordinates courses in operative practices and techniques, principles of surgical assisting, advanced topics in surgery, and has experience teaching anatomy. She is pursuing additional training in the subject through the Anatomy Training Program (co-sponsored by the Anatomical Society and American Association of Anatomists).

Ms. Olson is an active member of the National Surgical Assistant Association for which she is the vice president. She also served as chair for the Accreditation Review Council on Education in Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (ARC/STSA) board. ARC/STSA provides national recognition for higher education programs in surgical technology and surgical assisting, in collaboration with the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP), in order to promote quality surgical patient care through quality credible education.

Tatum Schulz-Fischbach

Tatum Schulz-Fischbach officially joined the faculty in 2023. In 2018, Ms. Schulz-Fischbach graduated from the University of Massachusetts with her B.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. After graduation, she completed the SFA program at Mayo Clinic and was hired in the Department of Gynecology and Urology here. For the past five years, Ms. Schulz-Fischbach has found a passion for teaching all aspects of surgery and sharing excitement for the surgical assisting career. A couple of her favorite surgeries are robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy and endometriosis procedures. Ms. Schulz-Fischbach continued her education and completed a Master of Arts in Health and Human Services Administration in 2023. 

Ms. Schulz-Fischbach is very active at Mayo Clinic with involvement in the HELP program, Coordinating Councils, CSA II Advisory Council, and initiatives promoting patient safety and quality of care. She is an active member of the National Surgical Assistant Association (NSAA).

Austin Tretter

Austin Tretter joined the faculty in 2024. Mr. Tretter graduated from the University of Minnesota Rochester in 2019 with his B.S. in Health Sciences. Following graduation, he completed the Surgical First Assistant (SFA) program here at Mayo Clinic and was hired into our Trauma and Critical Care General Surgery (TCGS) team.

Mr. Tretter has since enhanced his surgical skills and has excelled in the SFA role in minimally invasive surgery. He primarily works in bariatric and abdominal wall reconstruction surgery. His love for surgery stems from his passion for anatomy and fascination with how the human body heals itself. Mr. Tretter’s enthusiasm for working with students and fervor for the significance of the SFA role has only grown since his own time as a student. It excites him to see others grow and master skills and become successful in the realm of surgery

Kat Zeller

Katherine Zeller joined the faculty in 2024. Ms. Zeller graduated with a masters of surgical assisting at Eastern Virginia Medical School in 2019 with specialties in vascular and plastic surgery. She began her career at Mayo Clinic soon after graduation and currently works on the urology and gynecology surgical services team at the Methodist campus. During her tenure, she has also contributed as a surgical assistant recruiter and an advocate for the surgical assistant role. Ms. Zeller is an active member of the National Surgical Assistant Association (NSAA) and the unit coordinating council in the urology and gynecology department. She has a keen interest in robotic surgical procedures and newer surgical advancements. With a longstanding passion for teaching and a commitment to providing excellent patient care, Ms. Zeller is dedicated to advancing medical education and the surgical practice.