OR Nurse

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Specializes in Rehab, Ortho-Spine, Med-Surg, & Psych.

Hello,

Is there a difference between an OR Nurse and a Circulator Nurse? If so, what are those?

Thanks!

Not where I work? You are either a circulating nurse or a scrub tech/nurse inside the operating room. Those are two different jobs in the OR. But not OR nurse vs circulating nurse?

No such thing as a dumb question. If someone is offering or advertising this job description you have to ask exactly what the duties are.

Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

Generally, there is no difference. If it's in a job posting or job description, my best guess would be that the one labeled as a circulating nurse would more than likely not have an opportunity to learn to scrub. The one labeled as OR nurse may or may not have the opportunity to learn to scrub. Most facilities utilize surgical technologists in the scrub role because they are cheaper. Also, many states have certain requirements that the circulator in an OR must be an RN.

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