OR nursing.... "real nursing"

Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN · May 13, 2006

I think it's a different kind of nursing. Would never think or say that it's not really nursing, i know better than to do that.

Same as those that say you always lose your skills or don't use your skills once you start working in the OR. Maybe some people don't but i certainly haven't lost mine, and use it everyday.

suzanne4, RN · May 13, 2006

I have started IVs many times in the OR, you are responsible for what is going on in the room at any given time.

Use of a defibrillator, and many more times than they use it on the floor, especially in heart rooms.

There are many, many different types of nursing and that is what makes it so nice. There is something to fit almost everyone.

OR Nursing is REAL NURSING. Look at all of the equipment that you need to know how to use? Instruments that you need to know the names of? Uses of? Types of needles and sutures, and their uses?

It is just different from floor nursing, with a different set of skills. You may lose some of your floor skills, but you gain many others. Just depends on how you look at it.

icugirl33 · May 13, 2006

Hello,

I think as long as you need to be licensed as a nurse to perform the duties, it's nursing. I don't think you can get someone of the street corner to be in the OR and do what you do. You are just lucky enough to have the patients' unconscious & no family members around to harass you.

ortess1971 · May 13, 2006

I think it's a different kind of nursing. Would never think or say that it's not really nursing, i know better than to do that.
Same as those that say you always lose your skills or don't use your skills once you start working in the OR. Maybe some people don't but i certainly haven't lost mine, and use it everyday.

:yeahthat:

RNOTODAY, BSN, RN · May 14, 2006

Interesting, thanks for your replies everyone.......Unfortunately, all IV's are started by anesthesia in my hospital....but I get to start the occasional pedi ones, since I have alot of experience with them....I am also not used to handing meds off to the sterile field, where I have no more control over it!!!! I guess I will get used to it......I do like it, and am excited to learn it all........

shodobe · May 14, 2006

I start IVs, I give meds. I continously correct the mistakes the floor nurses make on a daily basis. So what's the question? I guess I am in a different position because I do all this. You wouldn't even believe all the things that slip by from a M/S nurse or Peds nurse not noticing. Lab values all wrong, not "really" NPO, patients asking me questions the floor nurse "should" be able to answer. All the nurses who work in my department have to do this on a daily basis because they, the outside nurses, aren't really doing their job. So you can see I really would resent a comment from anyone who would say we aren't really doing "real nursing". I am sure this happens all over the country where seasoned OR nurses are constantly covering the fact that some outside nurses really don't know what they are doing when getting patients ready for surgery, doing the checklist from top to bottom. Sorry, this kind of stuff really peeves me, just because we are out of the public's eye we don't exist as nurses. Good night

Corvette Guy · May 14, 2006

Been there, done that...

SmilingBluEyes · May 14, 2006

Different skils sets.....still nursing.

This need not be an "us versus them" thing.....

Floor nurses make mistakes. Lab techicians do too. So do OR nurses.

I respect nursing as a PROFESSION, no matter what "hat" we may wear.

joannep · May 14, 2006

I can understand your concern. Perhaps I can help ... after 15 years in the OR I decided to change back to a ward job. Within hours of starting I realised that I knew so much more than what the ward nurses knew, even the senior staff. I'll give you an example, I came on to a shift where the patient needed a chest drain put in asap, on the floor. The ward staff were running around not knowing what equipment was needed, or where to get it. One phone call by me got it organised, and I helped the surgeon put it in. He was very surprised to see me, and recognised me. The ward staff were stunned that I just breezed through, they were very stressed.

Every arrest we had, I was there, managing the airway, assisting the intubation. That was second nature to me.

They learn't to respect that I had knowledge that they didn't have, and that I could cope with stressful situations with ease.

I stayed out of the OR for two years, and then went back, with a new respect for what it was like for the nurses on the "outside".

RNOTODAY, BSN, RN · May 14, 2006

I start IVs, I give meds. I continously correct the mistakes the floor nurses make on a daily basis. So what's the question? I guess I am in a different position because I do all this. You wouldn't even believe all the things that slip by from a M/S nurse or Peds nurse not noticing. Lab values all wrong, not "really" NPO, patients asking me questions the floor nurse "should" be able to answer. All the nurses who work in my department have to do this on a daily basis because they, the outside nurses, aren't really doing their job. So you can see I really would resent a comment from anyone who would say we aren't really doing "real nursing". I am sure this happens all over the country where seasoned OR nurses are constantly covering the fact that some outside nurses really don't know what they are doing when getting patients ready for surgery, doing the checklist from top to bottom. Sorry, this kind of stuff really peeves me, just because we are out of the public's eye we don't exist as nurses. Good night

Thanks for that excellent reply........

I didnt mean for this thread to be an us against them sort of thing (I am an OR nurse, too, remember!!!) But, as I have never been in an OR before I took this position, I have nothing to compare it to. And, as I have said in a previous thread, coming in my orientation group got alot of crap from the techs, in particular. They have even been so bold to say "You dont need a license to do your job, a tech could do it no problem, and I bet you thats going to be how it is in 5 years or so".. :uhoh3: I was speechless. I really was. But now I have come to realize, this is a facility specific problem, and the management is not respected, morale is very low, etc etc......I was just wondering what you all have experienced...

thanks shodobe, for your reply, as always it is encouraging. Could you be my preceptor by any chance????? :idea: (because I dont have a consisitent one!!!!) Keep these bits of info and insight coming!!!!

shodobe · May 14, 2006

The problem with a few respondents is they use "kid" gloves to get things done. My whole reason for thr response was that you constantly have to watch out for yourself and your patient. Don't expect everyone to treat situations the same as yourself. Mistakes do happen and I know OR nurses make them too, but I feel that I always have to be on my guard when it comes to getting patients ready for the OR. Too many potentially harmful mistakes are possibly made by outside departments. We are lucky enough to have computer access to patient's records so we can look ahead for potential problems and take care of them early. When floor nurses are asked why they didn't notice the problem most of them say, "yeah, your right, thanks".I guess the biggest peeve I have is the constant reminders to them, time and time again with NO remembering the next time! Always be vigilant, never expect something to be done correctly and always, always be your patient's advocate for their protection. Sorry if some people think this is a us against them, because it is most of the time.