Personality type for perioperative nursing?

[Maddi_Rose]

Hey guys, I'm in second year of nursing school in BC. I'm really interested in OR nursing, and hoping that I can work in an OR in some capacity over the summer if possible, depending on their policies and such, to see if I would in fact like it. But for now I was wondering what you guys think about what kind of personalities are suited for the OR best. Of course everyone is different and there's going to be diversity, but do you think there are themes to an OR nurse's qualities, personality, what they like, etc? Just to give me a better idea possibly if I would enjoy working there once I'm done :)

Thank you guys and gals!

[boopette]

I admit that I am an introvert. I have always been. I never thought I would survive in the OR during orientation. When my preceptor told me to do the "time-out" i did the "freak-out" instead. I had to get the attention of all these people? They have to listen to me? But being in the OR now for 2 years I have become way more comfortable in being assertive and standing up for myself and the patient. My job has really taught me how to come out of my shell.

[linguine]

When I shadowed in an OR during a nursing school rotation, the OR had a quiet but also highly concentrated energy type feeling. To me, the med surg floors were overwhelming in comparison because there was more chatter and activity because of the amount of patients and staff present at any given moment. :)

[evanRN]

I've been an OR nurse for 4 years, specialized in neuro and traveled, worked with some internationally renowned neurosurgeons, and I can tell you there is one personality trait that matters more than any other: discipline. I don't care how smart you are, how you handle stress, if you're annoyingly amiable or dead-serious-all-the-time with the most cut-throat killer instincts... if you lack discipline you will not be a good patient advocate in the OR. And that is what matters most: being a true patient advocate. You can never know how the nature of the day will unfold. Some days it's smooth sailing and others it's just a never-ending **** show. You can have unforeseen patient complications, intrsumentation problems, equipment malfunctioning, your whole OR team malfunctioning... You can't control those extrinsic factors. But you can control how you will manage whatever obstacles occur. In the back of your mind you can never lose sight of what matters (i.e. the patient and the quality of their care during surgery). Surgeons can yell and act like children. Anesthesiologists, ditto; fellow RNs, ditto; STs, ditto. You might crack out of character from time to time yourself, F-bombing and shouting at people with "knife hands." I'm not going to lie, it will get ugly from time to time, but STRIVE to be the center of control and order in the room. Put your foot down on petty, malicious nonsense. And try to be kind. Treat your team like they're family. Treat the patient like as if they were you living another life, or your closest loved one. OR nurses are uncomprimising, tough like coffin nails - but it's not about being tough, or domineering, it's about taking responsibility for everything that happens to your patient the second that propofol is pushed and they can no longer protect themselves from harm. It is about protecting your patient from harm. And I have seen so much that can put your patient at harm, it is scary. So bring some discipline to this profession. As my preceptor taught me: come correct, or don't come at all.

Also, this job is not for clock watchers; you'll get stuck late, you'll be asked to come in early, you'll be asked to cover call. The hours and the call/OT can be too much for people, especially if you're just starting a family. So keep that in mind as a practical concern: not only will you not always get out on time, you might very well get out late on a frequent basis.

Peace.

[BosLeyDog1]

A coworker who was pregnant and taking iron prenatal vitamins had a gas attack at the field during an aorta to femoral bypass. Suddenly the chief resident that was closing exclaimed, "Oh no, I think we cut bowel". He cut out all the stitches and ran the bowel. We asked the scrub nurse,"Didn't you own up to it?" She replied, " No, I helped them look. They could have cut the bowel, you know".

[dlzk123]

A coworker who was pregnant and taking iron prenatal vitamins had a gas attack at the field during an aorta to femoral bypass. Suddenly the chief resident that was closing exclaimed, "Oh no, I think we cut bowel". He cut out all the stitches and ran the bowel. We asked the scrub nurse,"Didn't you own up to it?" She replied, " No, I helped them look. They could have cut the bowel, you know".

I died laughing over this .2.33 am

[ctsurgeryscrubrn]

I may only have a few years in O.R. nursing, but I feel that being hand-picked to scrub on the cardiac team has shown some of my commitment to the field. I will say that I think the following have been consistent in the extremely talented scrubs that I got to watch and now emulate...

1) When cynicism rares its ugly head, squash it: In high-stakes surgery, the leader of the team (attending) wants the A-team in there - the best. And I've seen situations where the surgeon will dictate exactly who he wants in the sterile field - it's not based on friendship or gender or anything else - it's based on who will do the best job to get the patient through the case. I believe that to be 100% true - cynicism will kill you.

2) Preparation matters - if you want to be picked for the high-risk cases, you HAVE to be prepared. I was taught to review my thick cardiac surgery text before a big case, even if I had scrubbed the case before. It never hurts to know all the pitfalls, potential complications, and the sequence of the case - the magical 'symphony' that we all strive for in the O.R. cannot be done by one person. Preparation is everything.

3) An ability to stay calm - In cardiac surgery, when things go wrong, they go wrong in a hurry. You're going to get yelled at, people will scream orders at you. You have to take the "you" out of the equation. It's about saving a dying patient, not about your feelings. That sounds cold, but everybody is under tremendous stress when things go wrong - people don't want frantic people around during frantic situations. They want methodical people who can move quickly, but aren't going to go in 100 directions easily.

4) Self-awareness - I've always worked with cardiac surgeons who love to teach and love to show others what and why they do things a certain way. However, there is a time and a place for everything. I once saw a trainee who was being considered for the cardiac team start asking questions as the patient went into v-fib. That sounds outrageous, but you really need to know when is the right time for things, and when is not - and that goes for almost everything.

5) Technical skill & etiquette - I was always taught to use "closed loop communication" during all cases - whether it's a nose job or an open TAAA repair. I am disappointed that habits like those, which help prevent error, are not always followed. All surgery is acute and I think it's important to respect the tremendous privilege we have to heal with our hands. Studying the instrumentation and knowing how to hand it across in a way that the surgeon can maintain focus on the field seems so 'insignificant'. I've learned that surgeons ALWAYS remember the little things like that...and they appreciate it. It's not about winning approval; it's about showing everybody on that team that you've brought your A-game.