bonquilt

I think you would get a better experience base in the hospital OR. You can get a year or two in that OR, then maybe try outpatient. I've worked in both, and at this point in my career/life, I prefer ambulatory surgery centers (20+ years, over 50 yr. old). But I really think, as a new OR RN, you'd get a much better foundation in the hospital.

Surgeons (at least the ones I've worked with over the years) generally say a 'thanks for helping today', but it usually is like 'have a nice day'. But one surgeon stands out; if he missed saying 'thank you' in the OR, he would search for the people assigned in that room and thank them personally at the end of the day. I have also had a surgeon who told the CEO (and the other C_O's) that he liked working with me because I stayed a step ahead of him. Felt so good!

"... cat cages!" okay, so I like watching Dexter and similar shows/movies/books. Hmmm, maybe that's why I love working in the OR...... :rotfl:

Good for you for not killing him yet! I've been lucky in that my husband's health issues have all been short-term. About 3 days after an ankle surgery, he complained I wasn't being sympathetic enough--"I hope you don't treat your patients this way." I told him "I get PAID to be nice to them!" It truly sounds like his background is what's creating the problem. Shame on the nurses who told him taking pain meds equals addiction!! It's great that Toradol is controlling his pain. Maybe reinforcing the fact that it's an anti-inflammatory rather than a narcotic-type drug (and therefore the 'addiction' factor is out) will help him to take it regularly. And I've got an idea for you--you don't have to wait for garbage day, just chop him up into 4-6" pieces, put them in a cooler on wheels and take some kids to the zoo. When no one is looking, toss pieces into the big cat cages!

Speaking as someone who went straight to the OR from school, I would definitely get a year or two of experience (I'd think either area would be good). Working with different disease processes, learning meds, all that will be helpful in your future OR career. I love the OR, and was really happy to get in straight out of school. I've been told (many times) that I'm a great OR nurse. But I frequently feel like I "missed out" on some basic knowledge that I would have gotten if I'd worked 'the floor' first.

What would you like to know, Heather? OR nursing is a terrific career. It's one of those fields where it seems people either love it or hate it; no inbetween.

Can someone tell me about the physical demands of out-pt dialysis nursing? Looking for something less physically demanding than the OR. Thanks in advance!

When I was 18, I had some neurofibromas removed. As they placed the mask over my face, I heard someone behind my head (probably the scrub nurse) say "oops!". My last thought was 'no 'oops' get me outta here'. Waking up, I remember saying 'ooh, it feels like when they got me drunk' and then, seeing my mom at my bedside, 'oh, momma, don't tell daddy!'. It's fun to see what the patient remembers. I've heard all kinds of things, going out and waking up, in the 20 years I've worked in the OR! I do try to be sure that the last thing a pt hears from me is 'we're going to take good care of you'. I also tell them, as anes. starts pushing the propofol, 'pick out a nice dream'.

I resent you saying tramadol is a throw-away drug. no, it doesn't work for everyone. But then neither does tylenol. I take tramadol for my chronic pain (a form of lupus, not SLE). Works pretty good, allows me to continue to work on the days the pain is bad and doesn't mess with my brain. It's my 'second-line' med, if the excederin isn't working. Hydrocodone is my third-line, when I'm off the clock. Yet it doesn't touch my headaches or neck pain... go figure.

I work in the OR, so I get to hear a LOT of funny things! My own story, I remember waking up from the general anes. when I was 19, my mom was at the bedside and asked me how I was feeling. I replied "it feel like the time I got drunk." pause... "oh, momma, please don't tell daddy!" Patients: under sedation: "When can I have sex again? We were practicing all night with my foot in the air" (bunion surgery). Surgeon told her she had to wait until she got to the recovery room... a lot responses along the line of "this is good stuff" from minors Waking up in the OR: after finally getting a pt to admit to very recent meth use, anes. and surgery proceded as scheduled. As she was waking up, she was quite combative so my scrub tech came over to help keep her on the stretcher. She looked at him, then started to scream at me "you said you wouldn't report me, you can't take me to jail" I;d tell her we weren't taking her to jail, then she'd ask "then why is HE here?" we sometimes have to struggle to keep the patient covered during transport to PACU because they get restless and/or combative. This guy was struggling, so I kept throwing the blanket back over him (I swear, why do these people make the 30-second trip to PACU seem like 30 mins). He then sat straight up in the stretcher, threw back the blanket, pulled off his gown and declared for all to hear "I was born nekkid, I'm gonna stay nekkid". Okay, fine, I can stop trying to cover him up now. Also had a prison guard, who had surgery to repair a broken wrist battling with a prisoner. As he was waking up, I leaned over him a bit and called his name. He reached up with his other hand and grabbed me by the neck and started squeezing. I was babbling "I'm your nurse I'm your nurse" while everyone else was busy laughing at the scene (thanks for all your help, folks, especially you, anesthesia, standing RIGHT NEXT TO ME and his hand). I NEVER lean over a corrections officer or a policeman now! Bonnie in Snohomish, WA

I think our maintenance guys get a kick out of my 'fixit tags'. I not only describe what isn't working, I detail what I did to try to make it work (like changing handpieces, cords, changing to another wall outlet, etc) and what happened when I changed things! Far better than one nurse I work with, hers all say "not working".

I have worked at my current hospital for 11 years, and in the past they have always celebrated the week as "Hospital Week" complete with 3 shifts of: free admin-served barbeque (burgers and hot dogs with the usual trimmings), 'ice cream cart' which goes to each area and serves up your choice of ice cream sundaes, 'door prizes' every day/shift, and some other little things. This year, each nursing department got a poster that said Happy Nurses Week. Even had a patient (who is a nurse elsewhere) ask what we got for Nurses Week. I pointed to the poster and said "That." She was a bit surprised. On the good side: A local pizza place always gives us coupons for a free personal-size pizza. However, the unit sec. from our ACU dept made home-made soup, cesear salad, and a yummy Bailey's cheesecake for ACU, OR, and PACU. VERY thoughtful!! Guess what; we'll remember this slight while we're negotiating our contract (started the week before Nurses week)! Suppose they need to pay for all those consultants somehow!!

You didn't include one option in the poll : HE** NO! Sorry, my hospital doesn't care about it's employees on a normal basis, what makes you think it would care in a crisis? Yeah, we do mock disaster drills, and have a disaster preparedness plan. We do quite well during these drills. Yet, a few years ago, when the local high school actually had a real bomb threat, what happened? All the staff (including admin.) who had kids there LEFT to get their kids! So much for disaster drills....

Geesh, sounds like a nurse sup we used to have. I got written up one late Sunday night because I hung up on her. Manager asked me why I had hung up... I explained the conversation (too long to go into, basically the sup. was an idiot), then said "it was either hang up on her or call her a stupid *****". Dear manager tried to conceal that snicker, but I saw it! Had to write an apology. So I just said "sorry for hanging up on you". Wanted to say "sorry you're so stupid". Okay, I speak like an OR nurse! And you know, I didn't swear (beyond damn) before I was a nurse--honestly!

Pt wasn't really confused, just drugged... Doing a lady partsl hysterectomy, pt chose spinal anesthesia with some sedation. She kept asking the surgeon about hormone replacement therapy. She was quiet for a minute, then we hear her ask "Dr. R, when you give it to your women do you prefer lady partslly or orally?" Thought we were gonna need a mop we all laughed so hard! Another time a pt was having her bunion removed, under spinal. Half-way thru, she siad "My husband and I were practicing with my foot in the air last night... how long before I can have sex?" Dr asked her to at least wait until she got out of the OR....

For hanging up on a nursing supervisor. I hadn't been working at this hospital very long, and was doing an emergency surgical case on a weekend evening. We were nearing the end, and I called the Sup. to see who was doing the recovery (PACU). She said there wasn't anybody, that I had to do it. I told her no, I wasn't oriented to that unit plus I had no experience other than OR. She snottily replied "All OR nurses do recovery". I calmly explained to her that they do not, and that I do not, and that it wasn't safe for me to do something I had no experience. Again she said I had to do the recovery. Then I explained to her that I wasn't ACLS-certified and therefore couldn't legally do PACU. Her response? "We can waive that; we waive that all the time". Told her again that I wasn't doing recovery, she started to insist again, and I hung up on her. Amazingly enough, she found someone to do it. Next morning, my director asked me about it (Sup had written me up). I told her what happened, and she did agree with me on refusing, but asked why I hung up. I tod her it was 'either hang up or call her a stupid b***h.' She muffled a snicker, then said I did have to write an apology. Afterwards, I told the director that if this hospital waives the ACLS requirement after-hours I couldn't and wouldn't recommend the place to anybody. Found out we don't waive it, thankfully! Got thanked by my co-workers, tho; they didn't like doing PACU during their on-call hours, and since I didn't have to do it neither did they anymore!! Sometimes I think we have some of the dumbest nursing supervisors. One calls us in the middle of the night, announces who she is and the name of the hospital, then says "we have a surgery" and then SILENCE! Okay, it's 3am, you're calling me, you damn well BETTER have a surgery. I don't ask what it is; I wait for her to tell me. Sometimes it's quite amusing, too. Like the time she said Dr. E had a stab wound he wanted to take to surgery. Having had experience in a trauma hospital, I asked where the stab wound was. The reply? "In the ER". She's the same one who called us in for a 'hip hemi-arthroscopy' (are we scoping only half the hip?). But I guess it's good she's a supervisor instead of actually giving pt care! Bonnie in Snohomish, WA

Not only would I call in rich, I'd tell them they can have everything in my locker AND my last paycheck (if it meant I had to come in to pick it up)! Of course, I'd wait until I had that lottery check in my hot little hands... :balloons:

This one is from nursing school (I've worked in OR since graduation, so don't see written orders very often).. 1 transderm nitro po q am (here, suck on this patch for a while) Oh, do remember a verbal order in the OR: doc wanted some heparin in the saline irrigation. How much? "Just a little bit". She never did specify an amt (either in mls or in strength). Got her a hep lock syringe and she was happy with that.

Funniest thing I've heard from a pt... pt had a spinal for vag hyst. She kept going on and on about hormone replacement, and the surgeon would give her brief answers (she had also had versed, so asked the same questions over and over). She was quiet for a few minutes, and then she loudly asked "Dr. R, when you give it to your women, do you prefer lady partsl or oral?" Surgeon laughed so hard he had to stop surgery to get himself together!!