[OR nurse nut]

This is my first post, but I wanted to get some feedback from nurses in other parts of the country on something.
As the circulating nurse, in our facility I have to "find" my CRNA when I roll the patient in the room. (yes, it's my responsibility, with no help from anyone). Page the doctor's assistant out of their "lounge" and then page the doctor to tell him we are ready for him. Is this as Assanine as it seems to me?
This isn't the only hospital I've worked in, but here it's the norm. I'm perplexed at this stupidity???

[Marie_LPN, RN]

Yes, it is assanine. In my facility it is not the norm. The only time anyone has to be paged is if the surgeon went to the ER and didn't inform the charge nurse that he's going to examine a pt. there.

[sunnyjohn]

That is a bit much. I thought the anesthesia had to be there when they rolled the patient in the room?

[suzanne4]

I hope that anesthesia has already seen the patient.

I do not spend the time paging anyone unless something has come up and their are changes of some type, or someone not expecting to be there is needed. They are all big people and know what time that their case is scheduled for and if not, it is their responsibility to check the board that morning for times, etc.

If you are spending all of that time looking for everyone, who is with the patient? That is your responsibility foremost, not being the paging system, or they need to assign someone to be there to do that.

[Jessy_RN]

Hello and welcome to the family of allnurses. Good luck to you.

[ShirleyM]

As far as anesthesia goes, they usually tell us (the circulator) where they're going to be (MD lounge or Day Surgery) when we're ready to bring the patient back. Most of the time they hanging out in Day Surgery. If we can't find anesthesia when we're ready to go back, we get the front desk on it. We've been told emphatically by management not to bring the patient back until we get word from the front desk of the surgeons' whereabouts...whether they're in the building or still need to see the patient, or if they're running late...that rule came out of some bad experiences. Having said that, we still play the hurry up and wait game. But yes, that does sound assanine (sp?)

[shodobe]

Number one, the CRNA is on the same level as I and besides that I am not his/hers handmaiden. I wouldn't even think about bringing the patient back to the room unless they had told me they were going to go and get something or grab a bite to eat. Even then they would would have had to SEE the patient BEFORE I did that. I hope no one puts these CRNAs on a higher level because of their creds. They are as much responsible for helping get the patient in the room as is the circ. I would also hope they weren't back in a lounge sitting waiting to make their appearence. I don't like to wait after anyone because of their laziness.

[MissJoRN]

Ugh...just went throught this yesterday. Brought back our second pt after turning over the room, CRNA and I got her settled, everything was already for the surgeons and they weren't there- waited a few minutes, asked the CRNA and tech if I was supposed to call them (??? c'mon, you know you have another pt!!) They work with this group frequently, I don't. No I was assured they always come in on their own. Many minutes later I said I'm impatient, I'm calling (we call the secretary who pages for us) Many minutes later they breeze in casually and say you should have paged us, we were waiting for you to page. We have delay codes we use to keep track anytime we're running behind so we know where our problems and trends are. We actuall have one for "surgeon lost between cases" I thought that was funny until yesterday.

Fact is, Most of our surgeons need to be summoned. We never take back the first pt of a suergeon's day until we have seen him/her for ourselves but following cases have a fairly predidctable turnover so although they don't wander far (unless they tell us, then we hold of) they do wander a little- they might be in another OR, "Dr's" lounge, "nurse's" lounge, front office, etc. It's a few extra seconds to call the sec on speed dial and say we're ready for so and so but it usually works well. Some Drs are predictible and we call ourselves over the intercom directly from, say, the Dr lounge.
Catching up with CRNA/MDA is almost never a problem. If it is it's usually because of a delay on my end and now they got involved helping a collegue and they catch me by the time the pt and I make it to the OR door. Hey, sometimes they take a pt back without me while I grab supplies for a last minute request.

[grimmy]

This is never a problem where I work because the anesthesia team brings the pt back to the room everytime. We usually interview the pt in tandem. While I interview, they get their meds, then I get mine, and the pt is brought to the room. Its pretty rare to not have the surgeon around - we invariably have the resident in the room, and we text page via internet/network when necessary. Its a nice system.

[granny7]

Originally Posted by OR nurse nut

This is my first post, but I wanted to get some feedback from nurses in other parts of the country on something.
As the circulating nurse, in our facility I have to "find" my CRNA when I roll the patient in the room. (yes, it's my responsibility, with no help from anyone). Page the doctor's assistant out of their "lounge" and then page the doctor to tell him we are ready for him. Is this as Assanine as it seems to me?
This isn't the only hospital I've worked in, but here it's the norm. I'm perplexed at this stupidity???

Oh yea that is typical for where I work in the south....I usually take my patient to the room...If the CRNA isn't around, I page the MD. I don't let that delay my case. A few of the CRNA's take breaks between every and I mean every case. They have to go pee then...It is terrible. I have to find anesthesia for my case. Then I have to find the surgeon and the PA for my case. at the end of every case I have to make 4 telephone calls....it is unreal!!! I have asked for a secretary...LOL