[irmaRN]

hi... can anyone tell me what O.R. nurses do exactly? where i work RNs do not scrub, just circulate.. does it involve pacu nursing as well? any comments welcome...

[TazziRN]

or and pacu are connected but different. or circulates and scrubs to assist, pacu recovers. if nurses in your or don't scrub to assist, who does? somebody has to be sterile to assist the docs.

[RNOTODAY]

Originally Posted by TazziRN

or and pacu are connected but different. or circulates and scrubs to assist, pacu recovers. if nurses in your or don't scrub to assist, who does? somebody has to be sterile to assist the docs.

Tazzi, where I work, we have mostly Surgical Techs to scrub....and the RN's learning to scrub is basically an afterthought.... I had to "fight" for scrubbing to be a big part of my orientation......

[NurseRoRo]

At my facility, 95% of the scrubbing is done by CSTs. RNs circulate, and occasionally have to go to PACU to help recover if there's a staff shortage there. And that's usually at the end of the day or if we're having a light day in the OR. I know that according to the PACU guidelines, there needs to be 2 RNs with the patient immediately after surgery until they can maintain their airways. Then it's 1 RN and a tech if the other RN can't stay.

We also have lots of residents assisting the docs.