FlyOR

You know you're an OR nurse when you hand people stuff that they murmur under their breath unintelligibly that they want. You know you're an OR nurse when you figure out you've created a "sterile field" around whatever vegetables you're chopping/ was...

I haven't done any psych nursing since nursing school. At the time, I actually did very well at it, and it was a definite option, however, I decided it was too much like my previous job and I wanted something different. Here's what I would be gratef...

I thank you all very much. I feel a bit better about my struggles with this mess. I guess my "keep your mouth shut" policy is really the best one, amazing how that one always works. I will explore the Al-anon meetings, I think it would help my spo...

Ahh. In this case, I am going to have to admit to not doing my homework. Jeepers, I know better! I guess I just thought that no one would come here and admit that they loathe a mentally fragile individual who happened to be in their sphere. And, a...

Pick up the newest edition of Periop standards and read it cover to cover, almost everything about being an OR nurse is in there, and it will give you the knowledge as a base while you pick up the rest. With already having training in how to move/ h...

Bravo! What a generous post Esme! I wish I had seen that when I was in anatomy! Just a suggestion, if you google "cardiac animations" or really any animations, you can get some good stuff. Sometimes the visual is the trick for certain learners, it...

You know, I have thought a lot about prayer when I am at work, mostly because I am doing the praying. Sometimes, I have been in cases that have been so dicey, that I have thought that one of the the reasons I drew it, WAS to pray. I think that at ...

LOVE Ortho! Great big femur fractures, drills, plates, screws, Jackson table and the satisfaction of "fixing"! Like General, but only at certain times. General surgeons can be mean )&*()*&(&& s. Cases are great, just who you're wor...

Using the argument "you knew it when you took the job" applies only so far, and likening pregnancy to various diseases doesn't hold water. Pregnancy is a life event, not a disease. There are two lives affected and protective policies benefit not j...

Yup, these responses are pretty typical of what I have seen in nursing. I come from outside the healthcare industry and I have been pretty appalled by how it deals with pregnant workers, especially considering the previous and continuing prevalence ...

When I was in nursing school, I just kept repeating to myself "shut up and learn". I think that helped me in orientation. Nurses who teach tend to like to teach, but it can be pretty thankless when you have someone who doesn't want to be taught, or...

Rather than PRN can you switch to part-time? At least that way you might have it easier dealing with the mandatory OT. Also, try going out of the box, can you work a weekend day? One night and a day? Sometimes you just have to start asking the rig...

I once pulled my sterile mayo over an undraped patient. Everyone has dumb moments. The fact that you realized it and immediately reported it says that you are where you should be. Sterile conscience is just that, a conscience, and the people who wo...

I don't know if this will help, but I treat a day in the OR like an athletic event. I make sure I go to bed early, prepare everything I need the night before and kind of block out life for those eight hours. I eat protein at about 0630 and then a s...

You've been given a lot of good answers, but as someone who is still relatively new to healthcare I see the circulating nurse in the OR as the minimum. Surgery is the cutting open of the human body. The patient has no defenses except those that the...

I only wear a wedding ring, but it means a lot to me, so I leave it at home. I've tried tying it to the string in my scrubs, only to almost throw it in the laundry machine. I've tried safety-pinning it to by scrub top, same thing. When I forget an...

Go back about twenty pages and start reading this OR board. Read all of the posts you can and then start formulating questions. New management thinking on the OR has a lot to do with error trapping, checklist compliance and basically having the guts ...

I wish you the best with your interview. If I were you I would dedicate a good afternoon to reading at least fifty pages of this site. That is what I did prior to my OR interview and they were impressed with how much I knew, the questions I asked a...

I try to preserve my patient's modesty as much as possible, however untying the gown is necessary not only to prevent pressure from knots, but if there is a lot of positioning necessary as well as transferring, I need to see everything in order to pr...

Oh please. I am still googling stuff two years later. I know nurses with ten years that google stuff, nevermind pronouncing it. This surgeon is a twit. Are you at a teaching hospital? Because if you are, I find that as long as I choose a non-stre...

Having 2 RNs in the room is a wonderful day. You always have an extra pair of hands and an extra active critical thinker. I find that RNs pitch in and get the work done efficiently and expeditiously. No lines are drawn at what's your role is, wher...

Want that! Want that!

I agree. My facility wants you to get certifications but really doesn't help you do it, nor do they pay for it. I have noticed that most OR jobs do usually state CNOR preferred etc. Given the state of the economy, as well as the desire of Magnet fa...

I am very happy where I am, but out of curiousity, how much experience do you need as an OR nurse before you could change hospitals? Thanks

That the amount of liability for even small decisions is huge. That co-workers, doctors, everybody anywhere near something going bad will look for ways to blame you and not themselves. Corollary: NO ONE HAS YOUR BACK. YOU HAVE TO PROTECT YOURSELF AN...