Do you miss patient contact?

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Hi everyone, I'm halfway through school and am seriously considering the OR. I'm lucky that in my area we have two large hospitals both with new RN residencies in the OR. The only thing that has me on the fence is the loss of patient contact. I feel the ability to connect with patients is one of my strongest assets and I wonder how much patient contact you really have in the OR. I have observed on two different occasions, once in the regular OR and another on a C-section in my day in labor and delivery. Thanks in advance for your responce!

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The challenge in OR nursing is to gain trust quickly. I think OR nurses are probably more intimately tied to their patients than some floor nurses. You've got about 2-5 minutes to convince someone (and their family) that you're capable, confident, and that you're going to take good care of them when they can do NOTHING in their own defense. And sometimes you're the last person they ever talk to. So while the contact may be brief it can be very intense.

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Some patients are extremely nervous right before surgery. Your therapeutic communication skills can make a huge difference.

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Specializes in surgical, emergency.

I agree with the other two posters,,,,as a surgical nurse, you must get to know your pt and establish rapport very quickly.

Thanks to medication, they may not really remember you later, (which decreased thank you cookie amounts ;)), but remember, it's you that is in a key role in a very important moment in their life.

I tell people, we're sort of like Santa's Helpers, we do a lot of our work while you're asleep!:lol2:

Mike

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Specializes in 2 years school nurse, 15 in the OR!.

Our outpatient nurses say that the patients are always asking, "Are you the nurse that will be with me in the OR?" We are very important to them, we watch out for them when they can't watch out for themselves.

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

Your suddenly the patient's best buddy. I still get patient's that want to hold hands as they go off to sleep. The patient is totally helpless as the go under and depend on you to be there for them and watch out for their safety. Anesthesia is there but I still think patient's connect closer to their nurse. The contact is there, it is just different because you have to pack alot in a short time. I think, or probably know, that most OR RNs know more about their patients in the short time they spend with them than some floor nurses do, but only because they have more patients to deal with on their floor. OR nursing is a one to one deal and makes all the difference to a nervous, scared patient.

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The challenge in OR nursing is to gain trust quickly. I think OR nurses are probably more intimately tied to their patients than some floor nurses. You've got about 2-5 minutes to convince someone (and their family) that you're capable, confident, and that you're going to take good care of them when they can do NOTHING in their own defense. And sometimes you're the last person they ever talk to. So while the contact may be brief it can be very intense.

Very well said (you others too).

I came to OR nursing from a totally different world: I was a practicing Podiatrist for 30 years. Podiatry is ALL ABOUT patient contact since you see many of your patients month in, month out. I've treated as many as 4 generations in one family-- you almost become a part of the family.

I do miss that long term contact, but the quick intimate contact of the OR is very satisfying indeed.

One thing that I do (although most of my colleagues don't) is try to go to the waiting area after the case and have a brief chat with the patient's family. Even though the Doc has been out to tell them the outcome of the case, the family invariably REALLY appreciates hearing it from the nurse. Give it a try if you don't already do this.

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Wow. Management gives you time to visit with family? I'd love to, but turnover times, baby...turnover times. :dancgrp:

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One of my favorite things about OR nursing is the fact that I have one patient at a time, and during that time my entire focus is on that patient. I'm lucky in that I am able to almost always build a quick relationship with my patients and their family members. I establish that relationship in pre-op, and I continue it in the OR. I make sure that I'm either holding my patient's hand or resting my hand on their shoulder (depending on how open they were in pre-op to personal contact) while they drift off, and I always make an effort to maintain eye contact. Very rarely does a patient look away when I do this.

I usually do heart cases, so I am in contact with the family during the surgery. And I do make an effort to follow up with my patients in SICU after their surgery.

It is my opinion that I have a much better relationship during the brief time I have with my OR patients than I ever had during med/surg clinicals in nursing school. At no time is a patient more vulnerable than when they are under anesthesia, especially in heart surgery when they're on the bypass machine. I may not be talking to my patient at that time, but there's no doubt in my mind that I'm having patient contact.

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Wow. Management gives you time to visit with family? I'd love to, but turnover times, baby...turnover times. :dancgrp:

Fook'em! I just do it whenever possible. The waiting area is very near the OR and right on the way to where we pick up our next patient anyway.

Besides, I'm the nurse who gets the most positive patient satisfaction feedback despite being in the OR for a relatively short time, so I guess management thinks I'm doing something right...

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Thank you all for responding with your opinions! I can understand how much that contact would mean to somebody going under ansthesia. Evan though the time is short you all make it QUALITY time!

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Fook'em!

:lol2::lol2:

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