I'm Starting OR Next Week....Help With Questions Please

[wayover20]

Hello again! I have previously posted regarding my need for change after many years in the ER, by possibly going to PACU, then maybe Cath Lab (it didn't happen) and then trying for the OR. Well....it's happening! Next Monday I will start on the job training in the OR, and in January I will go to the formal 6 month program. I was just wondering though, since I am going to the "training program", do I maintain my same pay or what? After all, I am at the cap of the staff RN salary and make $27.90/hr. Don't get me wrong...if I had to take a cut during training, I would (I just paid off my house!) just to learn OR.

I know this is a question for my manager or the HR dept, I just thought I 'd ask here and see what your experience has been. Is it typical to lose seniority pay while in training?

[suzanne4, RN]

You should be staying at the same rate, especially since you are in the same facility. You may be new to the OR, but you bring many other experiences with you that they younger nurses do not have. :)

Good luck with the new job. Please keep us posted on how things are working out for you.

[grimmy, RN]

i agree with suzanne. the new-to-the-or rns that we train keep their salaries, with certain caveats regarding bonuses, but i'm not sure exactly what those are.

and, just a tip to you: keep a journal or talk out your or orientation with us. i wish i had. it is information overload on a massive scale, and your emotions often get lost in the shuffle. i'm sure you will be on the ball, and diving in head-first. regardless, do all those stress-relieving things all us nurses know about (but rarely do! ): lots of sleep, good food, as much water as you can manage, and taking time to smell the roses. you'll do great! :yelclap:

[wayover20]

Thanks for the input and encouragment! This has been a really tough decision to make leaving what's been "my home" for many years...the ER. But I feel relieved I have done it. I just got off the phone with a fellow ER nurse that been doing it for 25yrs and she's also burnt to a crisp, but scared to make a change. I won't try to talk her into leaving there cuz that's her's to decide, but talking to my ER friends only solidifies my decision to go to OR. Thanks.