Lisa1639

Hey there, I went into the OR right after graduating from nursing school. I must admit that I have questioned my decision. We really do not do anything that was learned in nursing school, e.g. assessments, IV's, dispensing meds to patients, etc. In my experience, the OR has been all about knowing the equipment, positioning the patient and putting up with very temperamental surgeons that can really be quite demeaning to those around them. The nursing skills that I learned in school have been steadily deteriorating along with some of my knowledge because we just do not use this information. I do not think there is a "floor nurse" that could walk into the OR and do this job because it is so specialized. However, once you have been in the OR for a while, you would have a difficult time going to the floor without retraining. I would say though, if you really want to experience the OR then do so. I do not think it would be a problem finding a job elsewhere if you discover you do not like it. Lisa

Thanks for all of your help. Congrats and good luck w/graduate nursing school. Lisa

Congrats!! I hope to see you there!! Lisa.

Thank you so much for the information. This helps me a lot. I will take your advice and wait so I can join as an OR nurse. Hopefully, though, they will accept my waiver and allow me to join as an OR nurse according to my original plan. One last question, if I go in as an OR nurse and later decide that I would like to get some clinical experience as a Med Surg nurse, would it be hard to transition to this? Thanks again, Lisa.

I am waiting to hear if I have been selected by the AF and if so, will go to COT in August. I graduated from nursing school in Aug of 2006 and began working in the OR in Sep 2006. The recruiter told me that normally a person needs 1 year of experience in the OR to come in as an OR nurse, but with 6 months experience they can get a waiver and I can come in as an OR nurse. Now, However, they are telling me that I may not be able to come in as an OR nurse, but may need to come in as a Med-Surg nurse. I told them that I did not want to join as Med Surg, only OR. Likewise, the reason I waited to join was because I did not want to go to the NTP program because this would mean more time away from my family. Anyway, here are my questions: 1. Should I go in as OR or as Med Surg? 2. Is the OR a good field to be in the AF as a nurse? 3. Are OR nurses deployed a lot in the AF? 4. Are Med surgs deployed a lot in the AF? 5. For those who have experienced civilian nursing, do they like nursing better in the AF or civilian world? 6. Will the OR serve as a limitation when trying to acquire a Masters in either a nurse practioner program or CRNA program? I have so many questions because I have no concept of the military. The recruiter cannot help because they have not worked in the medical field. Any advice or help given will be much appreciated. Thanks, Lisa!!!