Would you recommend OR nursing?

Specialties Operating Room

Published

I have been a L&D nurse for 7 years and am considering a switch. I have the opportunity to apply to a 4 month perioperative internship, then would have to agree to work 2 years in one othe OR's in the hospital system (many to choose from!).I am interested to know what you like and don't like about the OR. Please let me know. Thanks!

RH

3 Posts

Tessa671,

Hi, Im a RN (Associate grad may 2000) who has worked in the OR for 4.5 years. I was previously a LPN scrub nurse. I love the OR. I would not trade any day I have worked, even the worst days for any other job. It is rewarding in the fact that I can see how sick my patients are and how I contribute to their healing/recovery. In school, I could see little effects of my job. Here, I can see how an operation can be a benefit to eachpatient. I do dislike the extra paperwork we fill out. It seems all forms have "backups" and we answer a lot of pages for the Doctors, it feels like a "Glorified Secretary." The call is terible but necessary and our Doctors tend not to abuse the system. The best part of my job is the patient interaction. It might be brief, but it feels good to help ease fears through discussion/explanation. I like the fact that I don't get attached to my patients. In my hospital, we are underpaid and overworked, but surgery as a whole is a family. We tend to stay closenit and have a better rapport with the Doctors and Anesthesia personnel. Like all departments, it is the people who make or break you. I work with the best nurses and supporting staff. I am biased towards OR nursing and plan on traveling next summer. I would recommend observing in the OR for 1-2 days and ask lots of questions regarding call, and overall responsibilities.

RH

shodobe

1,260 Posts

Specializes in O.R., ED, M/S.

I have been a nurse for 24 years and have been in the OR for the past 23.I have worked in the ER and on M/S.I am biased and feel the best nurses in the hospital are the OR nurses.The skills involved are very wide.One minute you may be doing a simple D&C and the next involved with a complex Ortho procedure.You have to be able to switch gears at a moments notice and not think twice about it.I would not do any other type of nursing.The call can at times be terrible but fortunately I don't mind at all.The one draw back that I can see is most new nurses coming into the OR think they can master the skills in a short time.It literally took me 5 years or more to say that I am very comfortable in my profession.I don't want to scare you off but more I want you to be very patient with yourself and give yourself time.Good luck and I hope you stick with it because we need more nurses in the OR. Mike

Sammy

1 Post

Originally posted by tessa671:

I have been a L&D nurse for 7 years and am considering a switch. I have the opportunity to apply to a 4 month perioperative internship, then would have to agree to work 2 years in one othe OR's in the hospital system (many to choose from!).I am interested to know what you like and don't like about the OR. Please let me know. Thanks!

Hi. I highly recommend OR nursing. I have been in the OR for 16 years. I started out as the department clerk. 9 years later, I decided to get my LPN so I could function as a scrub nurse. 4 years later, I obtained my CST (certification in surgical technology) & then my CFA (certified first assistant). All the while, I had been taking classes toward my RN, & finally achieved that almost 2 years ago. My position is "circulator", although "scrubbing " is my 1st love. In my OR, we are like one big family (docs included). And at times, we fight like brothers & sisters. But I wouldn't trade it for the world! They are truly my second family. OR nursing is different than any other kind of nursing. Most of it is OJT. One of the main things I like is that each day is a totally different day. I rarely get bored. Another thing I really like is that its not as structured as working on the floors. The thing I hate the most is being "on call" for emergency surgeries. My worst 48 hour weekend call was spent working 36 hours of it. Then some nights, I may not work at all. But we do get weekends & holidays off (that's real nice)! I would suggest visiting an OR & shadowing 2 or 3 people to see if the OR is for you. For info, you may also locate an Alexander's Care of the Patient in Surgery text, which I consider the OR nurses "bible". A good website is www.aorn.org. By the way, I'm in Arkansas, too (north east). Sammy

motherhenjjs

6 Posts

I absolutely would recommend going to the OR. I have been an OR nurse for 26 years and certified in OR nursing for 18 years. I currently teach for an internship program like the one you want to go to. If its affiliated with AORN's program it will be very successful. The internship program should give you a good basic OR background and teach you basic clinical skills. You could expect to be competent in General surgery by the time the program ends. OR nursing is critical are nursing on a level with the ER and ICU...depending on the type of procedures that are done at your facility and the acuity level of the patients. I would not work any where else! biggrin.gif

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