New RN offered OR position

[Bamorse22]

I've learned about working in surgery and all the perks that it has. 1 on 1, no head to toe assessment, no giving out meds. To some it would seem like a pretty sweet deal. But is it a good career decision? I just got out of school and passed the NCLEX and I'm worried I'll lose a lot of those skills I worked hard for. Like a thorough head to toe assessment, being able to have good time management with 4 patients, administering meds, doing skills. At least where I'm at this OR job is paying more and has a big opportunity to make a lot of money "on call hours". What do you guys think?

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

I started working as a new grad in the OR. I love it, and don't have any plans to leave the OR until I can no longer handle the physical demands of the job. Yes, I've lost some skills that would be used on other nursing units, but I've also picked up other skills that aren't used on those units. I've also worked with OR nurses who later transitioned into other nursing units and succeeded.

Only you can decide if this is the right career decision for you. Were you able to shadow as part of the interview process? If not, could you contact the nurse manager or HR and request a shadow day prior to making a decision about the job offer?

[Bamorse22]

Do you think if a year or 2 passed I'd have a problem transitioning to a CC type unit or if they'd seek other applicants? Just curious as to what someone would sees when they look at a nurse with only OR experience. I think OR sounds great, I've heard of tons of people that go in the OR and they stay there for years and it's all they want to do.

Great idea about the day of shadowing though. I'll have to check into that! Also at least from your experience, is there room for advancement as an OR RN?

[Rose_Queen, BSN, MSN, RN]

Depends on what you consider advancement. There's opportunities such as registered nurse first assistant, some NPs do work in surgery, there's management, staff education...

[yohanes9]

OR RN are in high demand you should be grateful that a hospital took you as a new grad cause it takes a lot of training! Go ahead and take that position you won't regret it! Good luck

[HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD]

Agree with PP - in my part of the country, periop nurses are the most tenured (oldest) specialty group. This means that there is a current shortage of qualified nurses that is getting worse as time goes on. The sub-specialty periop nurses who are qualified to work in areas like CV, Neuro, Ortho, etc.... are in very high demand.

I tend to disagree about "never have to do a head to to assessment"... my periop colleagues certainly would disagree. They are the primary patient advocate and the only continuous patient-centered presence in the OR. Their utilize their assessment skills to ensure that the patient is safely positioned & maintained during the procedure while everyone else is pretty much focused on their own functional area.