Mickeylaw

Thank you so much. Very helpful!

The recruiter only said the hospital is starting a new "perioperative class." They like to orient for 6 months in acute care areas and I am assuming it will be similar for the "perioperative" hires simply due to the amount of learning that would have to be done to be adequate to be pulled to any of the "perioperative" areas.This hospital likes to cross train people for preop, scrub, circulating, and PACU nursing. I am asking (because "perioperative" is such a vast area of nursing) what would be some important specific questions to ask at the interview about any of those divisions of perioperative nursing since I don't know what I don't know.

Thank you so much for your feedback, brownbook and red2ret!

Hello, I am a Registered Nurse and I may be interviewing for a perioperative position at the closest Level 1 trauma and teaching hospital in my area. I have 1 year of critical care experience most of which is med-surg ICU and some neuro icu. I have a year of home health experience with trachs, pegs, chronic diseases, etc. I have a little experience in school nursing as well because I help out as a substitute nurse and have been assisting with health screenings in the school district I also teaching RN students during their school health clinicals. All of this is to aim for a healthy variety of knowledge because I would like to be a FNP eventually and possibly teach RN students after I gain experience as an FNP. I have one semester of my Masters degree in nursing, but left the program because I truly didn't feel like I was getting out of the program what I felt like I needed. I love to learn and that is why I have applied for a perioperative position. I feel like it is an ever-changing and updating area of nursing and one of the places that I could constantly get to continue using skills before I lose them. I do not know anyone who works preop, is a scrub nurse, circulator, or anyone who works in PACU. I thought I could get some seasoned advise from some folks on here. I am most interested in PACU within the perioperative division due to the acute/icu type work that it sounds like and feel that I may be most comfortable here. Are there any questions beyond the typical interview questions, staffing ratio, their nurse's hours, orientation length, and biggest challenge of the nurses in this division right now is? Just seeking some help because I think I would like to try this area and hopefully fall in love with it. Thank you in advance. Mickeylaw