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Discussion

ER or OR that's the question...

Hello yal, or as others might say you guys, I am currently working at a regular floor, and waiting to find a new venue into specialty that I could enjoy and somewhat feel fulfilled.For you to be able to give me sound advice, I think it's vital for you to know how I am.

I am not a regular nurse nancy with full of smiles, and love and kindness. I treat people with respect and courtesy and professionalism, but am by no means a rear kisser, and do not believe in tolerating abuse or disrespect. My priority and primary objective is not to be a hotel servant, but to complete my task and push through, get things done. If patients want their tray cleaned, soup microwaved, want more ice and I am busy doing primary nursing duties, I politely request them to ask the techs. I find it somewhat unnecessary when patients want to hold conversation; I have given my meds, fixed the iv, got the admission done, I am moving on to the task; I am very sociable person, but there are just lots of things to do at work, and time cannot be used unwisely. I know some nurses feel fulfilled when they hold conversation with pts, make them smile, feel good, etc etc, but my happiness comes from getting (important) things done, stabilizing pts, etc.

Well, most will say I fit ER personality, but at the moment, I feel that I am quite burned out, and I want an environment that is somewhat controlled, one patient at a time, no crazy chaos (relatively to ER), somewhat more "we know what's going on" department, and thought of OR; I just am not sure whether I will love it or hate it, both ER or OR.

One thing unique about me is that I have tremendous respect and admiration for physicians since my first job trained me that way. I often times think what would the doctor want instead of the patients because doctors are the experts of medicine and I have never been let down by their decisions; they want the best for their patients that is backed up by medical and educational expertise. Therefore, I thought it would be quite learning experience and my own joy to work for a doctor/surgeon also, and just like ER or ICU, OR nurses are doing something that have immediate impact on life and death. Anyways, I would like a good life experience from someone who worked from both or at least one of those fields. Thank you.

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    I have worked the floors and now work in ICU. The floors do have a lot of chaos and you do get pulled in many directions. Sadly, the time to listen to a person's emotional needs can get lost in the limited time it takes to do all the required tasks and charting.

    It sounds like you prefer an area where you don't have to deal with the messy emotional side of patient life.

    Procedural nursing like cath lab, endoscopy, interventional radiology, might suit you well. OR is difficult to get into, but many of the nurses who go there stay there for life.

    Doctors are a mixed bag. Some will treat you just as much as a hotel servant as some patients, and others are much more tolerant. They are only human just like your nurses or patients.

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    if you are looking for less patient interaction, but still want to care for them, then I suggest OR nursing. You will always be in demand, as are ER nurses. Your post sounds like you are not afraid of challenges - and learning to be a good OR nurse would be a challenge. Consider that area.

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    • Author

    ICU? that is the realm of emotions clashing against each other, just not from patients but from family members; whew! maybe later! I am scared of the unknowns of ER, but ICUs are scary in the way that it's similar to cruising a ship and spotting a tip of ice berg. God knows what's going on with that pt and if he/she will live through your shift, so much respect to ICU nurses, but personally I won't work there :). But you're right, I am very fond of procedural nursing (as that is one big reason I might apply for OR) and the immediate impacts they make; the douche doctor part, I am not fond of, as I hear ER docs generally blend in as better team members, but I have huge respect for the docs, so I will have to sort that part on my own.

    I love challenges, not the trivial ones that just make me run for not-so-life-altering reasons (eg. admission process or med recs) but the ones that actually save lives, and in that sense, I love ER but also OR (the demand for all of course is huge, plus the pride that ER, OR, ICU nurses generally carry).

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    • Experts

    OR would be a good fit for you. As for the docs, you can always shadow for a day to get the culture of a hospital. Ask around of your nurse and surgeon friends.

    I have a close friend who is a surgeon, one of the favorites, as my OR friends tell it. He knows the names of the nurses working with him, respects them, and considers them a crucial part of the surgical team. He even states how things go when certain nurses work with him, e.g., "When Tammy is circulating, the case always goes quickly," or, "When Jane is scrub, she's on top of everything." He worked/works in a few area hospitals and directed me AWAY from one of them based on what he knows about my needs as a nurse and the culture of the facility.

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    As an ICU nurse, I would agree that OR/procedural is probably the best fit for you. ORs are very physician-centric.... ICU not so much. ICU nurses frequently find themselves facing off against physicians in order to advocate for their patient.

    I admire the OP's self-awareness. In the words of Dirty Harry "a man's gotta know his limitations".

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    • Author

    thanks houtx, i always spot you giving useful two cents. you are right; if I was given choices between ER or ICU, my heart would go for ER without a thought since I like to get things done then quick good-byes, deal with life-impacting things (which ICU also does), and not have same pts all shift in comatose or intubated, and not deal with other stuff than work; i love the fast-paced ER, nonchalant, "here-you-go, what, cushy pillow? let me go take care of this MI first, then we'll see if I have time!" type of work environment. it didn't take much for me to find my nurse personality.

    now a surgeon friend... i have seen surgeons, but never had a friend that's one :(. there are two surgeons that I see around my unit who seem pretty cool and patient (one caucasian lady and another indian gentleman), and I might be able to ask permission to shadow them for a case. I know OR is very prestigious spot to get into, but lot of options once experience is gained. i love the inputs here, thanks!

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