Length of orientation??

[ortess1971]

I am finishing nursing school in May and have been working as a scrub for 5 years. I have been offered a position already and many people have commented that since I can scrub, this will knock off a lot of time from my orientation. My question is :the typical new grad orientation is a year- about how long should I shoot for? I don't want to be rushed through....

[cocothemonkey]

5-6 months

[ortess1971]

Thanks!

[nellie_nurse812]

I was a LPN and scrubbed for about 5 years as well before I got my RN. It was a huge advantage to know how to scrub as I could anticipate the needs of the surgeon and my scrub. I can remember how I thought it would be a breeze to walk into the RN role. I wasnt as easy as I thought. It is a huge responsibility to assume this role. Most institutions have orientation programs for new grads(this is only one new role for you) and orientation programs for the OR( another new role).

When I got my RN I left the OR for 3 years for more experience in general nursing including ER and OB. I wanted to be a well rounded nurse and have some background to pull from. It worked for me, but you will have to do what you feel the most comfortable with. I will guarantee you, that you will ALWAYS have a job in an OR in the future if you want it......nellie

[hondurena]

I was an LPN/Scrub for 5 years, upon getting my RN I decided to do some med/surg and travel nsg for 1.5 yrs. I accepted a position for OR-RN back in Aug of 2005 my orientation is 9 months long scrub/circulate

My boss who hired me informed me today that she didn't know i had scrub experiences:uhoh3: even though we had a lenghty discussion about role transition form LPN-RN at my interview. I don't know if this will affect my orientation --- orientation will be over for me in Apr

[ortess1971]

The guys I work with are so cool:kiss -we have another scrub on second shift now, so he is nice enough to scrub the cases we get while I "circulate" under the supervision of one of the RN's. I get to prep, put the foley in and count. But keep in mind that the RN is right there the whole time. I think this is great because when I graduate in May and start work as a graduate nurse, the transition will be smoother. I have to say, the surgeon's have been awesome too-I'm sure they want to get out of there quickly as possible but they don't mind letting me do things that it would take the RN's half the time to do. Also, I'm learning that the paperwork is a pain in the fanny!

[JimS]

Even with scrub experience try to take advantage of a full length orientation. If you look at AORN's suggested orientation lenghts. It is 3 months for an experienced O.R. nurse and 6-9 months for a new nurse.