Hello all and thank you in advanced for taking the time to read this. I am a brand new Dec 2015 grad and new to the OR. I finished Periop 101 March 25 and I have been in rooms since. Now, less than 4 weeks later my hospital has me being a circulator by myself in GEN and GYN cases on April 26 and 29 with more solo cases planned for the following weeks. I am being told someone is on standby just a phone call away but none of that makes me feel comfortable. I am terribly nervous about the pace that they are moving me along because our OR is so desperate for Circulators.
I signed a 2 year contract that the hospital values at $5,000. I drive 140miles every day of the week. I knew about the drive before, but felt that I was so excited that it would be worth it. Well...needless to say this has not been worth it. I didn't know that I had so little hands on with the patient and I'm desperately missing patient care.
I'm concerned about losing my license if I make a mistake since my orientation seems to be rushed along due to the OR wanting to open more rooms up.
I turned down an ICU residency program and I really regret turning it down. I re-applied for it and had an interview that went really well. No offers have been made yet.
I am so ready to leave this job. I am desperate and would take honestly anything! Does anyone have any suggestions about my current OR job and whether it's smart for me to leave? And if my OR is moving at the normal pace for a brand new grad to the OR?
Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
Is the reason why they leave is because it was not what they expected or is it how they are treated.
It's not what they expected. Too many come in with romanticized ideas of what OR nursing entails. They don't think call will be an issue but then they get the reality check of yes, you can and sometimes will be called out of bed in the middle of the night. Or during your child's baseball game/ballet recital/concert if you signed up for that day. Those surgeons who are nice enough on the floor and have a great bedside manner aren't that way in the OR.
Is it their "bad habits" or questions you do not like?
I love to teach; I have no issues whatsoever with questions. Bad habits: not being a team player (refusing to help with room turnover, sitting in the lounge during a break between cases instead of helping in other rooms or offering breaks) doesn't fly well with me or the rest of the OR staff who bust their butts to get cases done, give breaks when able, help in other rooms.
I will say.. I felt so HONORED to become an OR NURSE.. I never thought twice.. But sometimes I think I need to shadow on the floor for the basics. I literally learn 5 things new everyday, and at least one thing would be common sense if I had some Floor Experience.... I do worry about upward growth too, other than RNFA... is there more? I was thinking maybe PERFUSIONIST?
Losing your license takes a good amount of hard work. You will be ok. Get out of this situation ASAP and get into a NURSING job.
New grad in the OR: arrrgghhh!!!!!!
This comment is too late for you, OP, the damage is done, but maybe some other new/soon to be grad will read this.
A new grad HAS NO BUSINESS is the OR.
A new grad does not have the skill set to help me in an emergency (the circulator is my right hand (wo)man. In an emergency, it is just me and you!)
A new grad will learn next to nothing about nursing in the OR.
The biggest crime we, as a profession, can make is to set our young up for failure. Placing a new grad in the OR is just that.
I was going to add some disclaimer down here about not wanting to hurt anyone's feeling etc etc to be about PC, but PC is what is screwing up this country, I am not going to be PC this, if it hurts your feelings, that's not my problem, patient safety is my problem.
I'm going to add my $00.02 to this post...and I am going to disagree with MorgantonCRNA's statement that new Nurse grads don't belong in the OR. Some of us have had many years of other experience in the medical field.....I have been a Paramedic since '89, but a Nurse for only 2 years and working in the OR as my first Nursing job. So, I would be confident working with a CRNA or Anesthesiologist in a code.
Feelings not hurt, but there are always exceptions when a statement like that is made.....
That's great that you have an opinion based on your experience. I have an opinion based on my own experience, and it's the complete opposite. In my OR, the nurses who come to us from other specialties can't hack it. They end up hating the OR and going back to the floor. The new grads are the ones who stay- and the ones that we don't have to break bad habits.
Yes! I thought I said this somewhere already. Agreed.
Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN
6 Articles; 12,051 Posts
It's not what they expected. Too many come in with romanticized ideas of what OR nursing entails. They don't think call will be an issue but then they get the reality check of yes, you can and sometimes will be called out of bed in the middle of the night. Or during your child's baseball game/ballet recital/concert if you signed up for that day. Those surgeons who are nice enough on the floor and have a great bedside manner aren't that way in the OR.
I love to teach; I have no issues whatsoever with questions. Bad habits: not being a team player (refusing to help with room turnover, sitting in the lounge during a break between cases instead of helping in other rooms or offering breaks) doesn't fly well with me or the rest of the OR staff who bust their butts to get cases done, give breaks when able, help in other rooms.