Leaving the OR

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I am a new graduate RN who got an opportunity to work in the OR via a year long orientation. I had always thought the OR was interesting but I was orginally interested in the ED. I decided to go to the OR because I thought it would be a great chance to learn something new and exciting as I grow as a RN. On the contrary alot of my other new graduate friends think going into the OR is a bad idea because I will lose the skills we learned in school and I will have trouble leaving the OR if I want to. I was hoping someone could share their thoughts on this, I have been very stressed that I made a bad decision. I would also like to know if anyone had transferred out of the OR and what units would be more accepting of a OR nurse. I would appreciate any feedback thank you.

Specializes in Emergency medicine, primary care.

I worked in the OR of a level one trauma center/teaching hospital for 3.5 years after I graduated nursing school. Never did a day of OR in clinicals but wanted full time work, and they paid for my training and certification, and gave me an extensive orientation for 5-6 months (I was very fortunate). I loved the OR and did neurosurgery, ENT, and dental primarily but scrubbed and circulated in all areas, except scrubbing in cardiothoracic. I worked in Ontario, Canada and we did not have scrub techs. Then, I relocated to Michigan when my now husband finished college at the time, and applied to a level one trauma center/teaching facility here. I actually interviewed for the OR and the ER on the same day in the facility. I always had an interest in ER and thought since I was relocating, now was as good a time as any to jump ship. I also had the vague idea of going back and doing my FNP so I figured ER would give me a nice knowledge base going back to school.

When I transitioned to ER, I had a 14 week orientation and many of the "skills" I was worried about losing came back quickly, and my educator was kind enough to offer to shadow me for a shift and just spent 12 hours doing IV starts and lab draws. It was a different mindset for sure - controlled chaos in the OR verses "poop hitting the fan" chaos in the ED but I have enjoyed both and thought both were very valuable in different ways. Of note, I was the first OR nurse my ER had hired in over ten years and the manager warned me it would be difficult. I, like an idiot, said "challenge accepted," and never looked back.

You can leave the OR if you want later on, there will probably be a learning curve (but that's expected switching into any specialty). Don't turn down an opportunity you might enjoy because of other people's opinions. If I had a dollar for every time I heard "OR is not like regular nursing" I'd be able to retire. Keep up with continuing education opportunities and follow ER related nursing updates and best practice guidelines if you choose to transition out down the line. Good luck to you!!

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You will not lose skills at all if you go to procedure area. Procedure area nurses work with highly specialized equipment, often mix and titrate medications, watch several different screens at once (in addition to monitoring the patient) and have to listen and collaborate with the rest of the team. It is a great environment if you are into tools and technology. Anyone who thinks OR nurses "will lose skills" hasn't done it yet. I agree with all of the posters here...you don't lose skills in any area of nursing, you just refine the particular ones you are capitalizing on in the moment.

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As a new grad, you don't have to map out your whole career right now.

If you enjoy the OR, then take this opportunity to learn all you can and be the best OR nurse you can be.

If, at some point down the road, you decide you want to pursue a different specialty, look around then and see what you need to do to transition.

If you're a good OR nurse, you'll be a good nurse. Yes, you'll require some orientation to transition to another area, but that would be true even if you did your "year of med-surg" that so many people recommend to new grads. Maybe you're learning different skills than your classmates who have taken bedside positions, but those skills are no less valuable, and they can be applied to other areas of nursing.

Do what makes you happy now, and stop worrying that the "wrong" job will pigeon hole you into one particular career path. One fo the beauties of nursing is that there are so many ways to be a nurse. If you've found something that works for you (even if it just works for you right now), then congratulations, and enjoy it!

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Specializes in Operating Room.
On 7/22/2019 at 7:26 PM, Tpax said:

I am a new graduate RN who got an opportunity to work in the OR via a year long orientation. I had always thought the OR was interesting but I was orginally interested in the ED. I decided to go to the OR because I thought it would be a great chance to learn something new and exciting as I grow as a RN. On the contrary alot of my other new graduate friends think going into the OR is a bad idea because I will lose the skills we learned in school and I will have trouble leaving the OR if I want to. I was hoping someone could share their thoughts on this, I have been very stressed that I made a bad decision. I would also like to know if anyone had transferred out of the OR and what units would be more accepting of a OR nurse. I would appreciate any feedback thank you.

I think it depends on you and the facility that you are working for. I have met quiet a few nurses that have successfully transitioned from the OR to other specialties such as ICU and have even being doing both. I work with 2 nurses that work part time in the ICU. I also know a current PACU nurse that started her career in the OR, transitioned to the ICU and did it for 10 years and is now working PACU as she is close to retirement. There are so many options in nursing.

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