sandiegojames

Latest Activity

1. Operating Room Efficiency

   sandiegojames replied to Link648099's topic in Operating Room

   Getting more efficiency out of your operating room assistants would without question be the primary area I would focus on to start with. In our OR, the periOP assistants are responsible for checking in with the room staff and having the equipment fo...

2. CNAs in the Operating Room

   sandiegojames replied to sandiegojames's topic in CNA/MA

   It isn't actually required to have a CNA cert to be an operating room assistant, of course it helps, but for those who move to a new state or have had their cert expire its a good option to paying for a new certification course. isiptraining.com is ...

3. CNAs in the Operating Room

   sandiegojames replied to sandiegojames's topic in CNA/MA

   @juniperpearl - If you are interested in OR nursing after nursing school you should definitely explore it. OR nurse internships can be difficult to get, but if you are already in the department, it really opens up opportunities.

4. Any Former Veterans?

   sandiegojames replied to stratus93's topic in Male Students

   Wow, nice job on the career path with the army... You definitely made the most of your time! I was a Korean Linguist 98c, then nursing school and have worked in the OR for 12 years.

5. CNAs in the Operating Room

   sandiegojames posted a topic in CNA/MA

   I'm an RN in the Operating Room, but while in school, like lots of students, worked as a CNA. At the time I didn't realize there were CNA jobs in the Operating Room. We actually call them Operating Room Assistants. The operating room assistant or ...

6. Does OR nurse get paid more than Med/Surg Nurse?

   sandiegojames replied to texas_rn1988's topic in Operating Room

   Nothing in medicine is worth it simply for the money. OR nurses or specialty nurses usually have the same base rate but plenty of opportunity to make extra for call pay. The heart and transplant teams in our OR are on call 50% of the time, so pick up...

7. How does one get an OR job without experience?

   sandiegojames replied to alusik17's topic in Operating Room

   Yes it is a challenge to get into the OR with no experience. Our hospital system offers a training program for nurses about once a year. I would say simply applying for a position out of the blue is a matter of being in the right place at the right...

8. Looking for instruments in the OR

   sandiegojames posted a topic in Operating Room

   I was circulating a case the other day and the surgeon asked for an instrument we didn't have on the field or in the room, so of course the search was on... The surgical tech said he thought it lived in one of the sets but wasn't sure which one. So...

9. Learning the Surgical Instruments

   sandiegojames replied to sandiegojames's topic in Operating Room

   Ouch, Our hospital just got fined $75,000 for self reporting that an Ortho instrument was found to have some bone fragments down in one of the small lumens that didn't get completely cleaned out prior to going through the autoclave. Does anyone else...

10. Seeking advise from seasoned OR nurses

    sandiegojames replied to Ilovethe80s's topic in Operating Room

    Just my thoughts on your questions... There are many many advanced opportunities that come from the OR. Management, educator, medical device sales, surgical first assist. OR nurses tend to be on the higher side of the salary scale simply because of...

11. CVOR or CCU(CVICU)?

    sandiegojames replied to ncube's topic in Operating Room

    If your goal is to become a cardiac NP, you need to go to the CCU/ICU. The role of a cardiac OR nurse, while highly specialized, is a very different skill set than what is required of an NP. As far as just being trained as a heart nurse in the OR w...

12. Operating X-Ray

    sandiegojames replied to IsseyM's topic in Operating Room

    I'm sure regulation varies from state to state. Here in california we are absolutely not allowed to activate the c arm or move it after it has been used on the patient ie reposition the c arm. The only thing we can do is move the arm prior to it's ...

13. Warning about duraprep

    sandiegojames posted a topic in Operating Room

    My mother is also an OR nurse and I just got this email from her today. Something to think about when you prep with duraprep or probably chloraprep. "Hi----Hey just want to let you in a a bit of advice----today I was prepping the pt for a discectomy...

14. Help please need a book on instruments

    sandiegojames replied to ChrisRN08's topic in Operating Room

    Try http://www.surgical-instrument-pictures.com/ It has a bunch of quizes on a lot of the surgical instruments with really good close up pictures. You can also check out amazon, there are a few books which are nice resources, but the site above is pr...

15. Jewelry in the OR - MisInformation

    sandiegojames replied to sandiegojames's topic in Operating Room

    As mentioned in the first post, jewelry should be removed before coming to the OR. There doesn't seem to be any arguement agaist this. However, to say "Cultural considerations comes second to safety" is not always true. An example of this is hono...