Asc-main or

[Plut334]

Hello all need some advice, I’ve been an or nurse my entire career it’s all I have ever done. Recently I have moved from an asc to a main or. I’m having trouble adapting to bigger cases, sicker patients and I don’t feel happy anymore doing it. I would rather be an in asc but the hours offered in a main or work better for me. Any advice ?

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

How recently did you make the change? While you have OR experience, you don't have experience in the types of cases you're now doing. There's definitely going to be that learning curve. Probably not the 1-2 years until you feel competent like a brand new OR nurse, but it's probably going to take several months. What was your orientation like?

[Plut334]

Just a few weeks. I’m not sure how long my orientation is going to be. I guess I just expected to be up and running a lot sooner. I thought it would come right back to me honestly.

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

Make sure you're checking in regularly with not only your preceptor but also your educator and manager for feedback. While you expected to be up and running much sooner, you may actually be right where they want/expect you to be. In my OR, each new nurse gets 6 weeks per major specialty and 3 weeks in those specialties that are far lesser volume. For an experienced nurse coming from an outpatient OR setting, we usually look at 3-4 weeks per major specialty and 1 week in the lesser volume specialties (these tend to be the ones seen at outpatient facilities anyway; it's an insurance thing or comorbidity thing that has them coming to the hospital as an outpatient instead of an ASC). The basic principles of OR nursing may be the same, but the complexity of the equipment, positioning, supplies, and surgeon routines is a whole new ball game.