Anyone a Pre op nurse?

TakeTwoAspirin, MSN, RN, APRN · Aug 5, 2008

You may want to re-post this under the specialty tab. You may get more/better responses from the OR specialty peeps.

lpnstudentin2010, LPN · Aug 5, 2008

From my perspective as the patient they:

call me the day before surgery (if it is day surgery) to verify what I am having done (I need to tell them so they know I understand it) and get a basic health history
day of they do another health history filling in any gaps that are missing and elaborating on what I told them the day before.
make sure I am healthy enough for surgery (take bp, pulse, temp, check pulse ox, and listen to lungs)
and calm any fears/answer any questions I may have

sandys · Aug 5, 2008

Pretty much as others have stated. Take vitals, ask pre-op questions, antibiotics if ordered, start an IV, for cataract patients there's a whole series of drops. We also get our same-day patients back and recover them which includes vitals every 15 minutes x 4, then every 30 minutes x 2, starting liquids and a diet, etc., and determining when they can be discharged.

I personally love the change of patients coming and going throughout the shift. A lot of the tasks themselves are very similar, but if you don't hit it off with a patient you aren't stuck with them all day!

Quaffetti · Aug 5, 2008

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Where I work now the patients are just getting heavier and heavier (both literally, and acuity wise) yet they haven't changed our staffing at all. I just don't think I can do it anymore.

I'm trying really hard to find another job within my hospital so that I can keep my retirement and vacation, but I've given it 6 months and then I'm going to a clinic or something.

I think pre op would be a great change and I think I would really like it.