Circulating vs. Scrubbing

[NursieB]

Hey All,

I am a Canadian RN BSN looking to relocate to the USA. I have all of the requirements to do so in terms of exams, immigration, etc. All I need is to find a job! I have 8 years OR experience at a large hospital in Canada.

One of the things I'm finding is that there seems to be a difference in the way OR's are staffed in terms of Circulating and Scrub Nurse. I am getting the impression that as the RN BSN I will be doing the Circulating and a Tech will do the scrubbing? Here we do not have that. We are all RN's who scrub and circulate.

Is this the case mostly in the USA? Is it something I should be concerned about? I don't want to lose my Scrub skills! Should I avoid jobs that are posted as Circulating RN only? What if I only circulate but then want to apply for a job elsewhere that requires me to do both? Would I be at a disadvantage?

Also in Canada we are extremely patient focused, safety focused and we also are unionized. Surgeons here respect RN's (for the most part)..... There's always a few that are difficult. I've always assumed it would be similar in the US.... Am I right?

Any info appreciated! Thanks for reading!

[kelso18]

Every facility I have worked at, in California and Washington state utilizes scrub techs. That being said, there are always opportunities to scrub if you so desire. Many times we will be short techs and the RN's who scrub are able to fill in. Best of luck and welcome to the USA!

[NursieB]

That sounds reasonable. Thanks for your reply!

[Kellyv79]

Hi! I live in Kansas City Missouri, the hospital that I work at is only staffed by RN's. My shifts are mixed with circulating and scrubbing. We also switch around with specialties, one day I might be scrubbing urology and the next day circulating ortho.

[Tseringurung]

There are many hospitals in the U.S. where the OR prefers RN's who can circulate and scrub. They actually appreciate when you can do both. I think its great that you can circulate and scrub. What specialty did you work in the OR?

[RickyRescueRN, BSN, RN]

In the California Bay area here (SF) and at the teaching hospital where I work, OR RN's are required to scrub and circulate. I think you will find that in most teaching/ university hospitals.

[skydancer7, BSN, RN]

I have also worked OR for 8 years in Washington and Oregon states. In both places, there are plenty of positions looking for nurses who both scrub and circulate. I am in the position of preferring to circulate only, and you can find that, too.

[Axmann, RN, BSN, NREMT-B]

Major Level I trauma center teaching hospital here, and we aren't automatically taught to scrub =\

How does someone advocate for more experience in that respect?

[nmrn586]

I work in a large teaching hospital in CA and we mostly utilize scrub techs. However it is beneficial to have the experience because they can use you for break relief if needed, but you wont automatically be scrubbing. That being said I know other major hospital in the area utilize nurses for both roles. I think it widely varies depending on the hospital and area you work and should be looked at on case-by-case basis. I went through a periop program that used to be 6 months scrub / 6 months circulating, and now its just under 6 months and we scrubbed maybe 6 times total, so I feel as though I am at a disadvantage if I want to ever go anywhere else. There is definitely a major shift towards techs though as it is much cheaper for a hospital.

[jackandjill123]

I think some of this depends on specialty. For example, my institution only has RNs as scrubs on the cardiac, open vascular, and complex neuro cases. Not sure that it was ever written as rule, but CSTs don't scrub those cases here. I just scrubbed an open thoracoabdominal AA repair and we had 3 nurses scrubbed-in.