jlamarev

Hey folks! I am currently an OR Nurse at a children's hospital. I have been a nurse for 3 years now and I have prior experience in med - surg and cardiac stepdown. I must say that when I got the OR I was looking for something different. I was not thinking about going back to school at all and thought that getting away from the bedside might be the change I needed. However, as time went past I started getting interested in the CRNA position. I spoke with both CRNAs and SRNAs that I work with to gage if going back to school is worth it. I definitely got a response of "Yes! You should do it while you are young!". I would of course have to get my year experience in the ICU. I'm looking to move to the Nashville area a round May. Do you guys have any input on what hospitals in the Nashville area are good to work at or any thoughts on CRNA school?

Hey Guys! I have been a RN for 3 Years in the adult world. I worked a little over 2 years in an "extended care" hospital where we mostly dealt with wound care, trachs/vents, and patients on long term ABx. Last summer I moved to a cardiac stepdown at a hospital a little closer to my house. I decided that I was tired of doing traditional bedside nursing. I am currently in training now in for a circulating nurse in the OR at a pediatric hospital. Of course I knew this would definitely be different but I feel a little culture shock to be honest. The course I'm in now seems like its geared mostly for the floor nurse but I feel a little frustrated because I'm not sure what REALLY applies to my new role in the OR. Like I said earlier I am used to the adult world so in the class where they talk about meds and some diseases I feel totally clueless! Next week I get to shadow in the OR and the following couple of weeks I'm gonna be in a peri-op course . I'm excited about that but it just feels a little weird right now because I don't know much about pediatrics but I'm not sure what I really need to know for the OR ;( Any thoughts or suggestions?

Ok thanks! I'm gonna be working Mon-Fri and I was thinking I could pick up if I had to during a Fri night. To me working 8 hr shifts is gonna be better for me than the 12 hr shifts

Hey guys just wanted to let you guys know I got a job offer for the OR!! I'm excited but of course nervous at the same time. I'm happy to get away from the floor and try something entirely different but at the same time I feel like my 3 years of experience goes out the window since I'm heading to a different world! Any advice??

Hey guys I had my interview for the OR position today! I think it went pretty well. They told me they may get me to shadow someone soon to make sure I like it. Funny thing is as soon as I left I got a call to schedule an interview for a Hospice Home Health RN!!! This turned out to be a pretty good day for me. Of course I am not sure what the OR's decision is going to be but I'm leaning towards that position over the home health job. To me (on the outside looking in) the OR job is more different from "working the floor" and that appeals to me. However, what are your guys' thoughts? Has anyone every worked home care? How is it? Especially compared to the floor or OR positions???

Do you work 8 hours shifts in the OR? I think that is a big plus over working allllll day shifts on the floor!

Hey guys I need some input from you. I currently work on a cardiac/tele floor but I have a interview soon for a "circulating nurse" in a pediatric hospital's OR. I have been a nurse for 3 years this month and I have to say I'm tired of floor nursing! On my particular unit I rarely feel like a medical professional but "the help" to my patients. I find my day is composed of tons of menial tasks and running myself ragged. I am by no means afraid of work but I want to explore another side of nursing other than bedside! If there are any nurses that work in the OR I would greatly appreciate your feedback about its pros and cons. The job I am interested in is Monday through Friday 7a-3p rather than the three 12s I currently work on my floor. My wife will be having our child in a couple of months and I feel that I will like these hours better also. I am young but I'm starting to get tided of working allllll day long. Thx for the help guys!

That's awesome that you don't have to work OT! I find that I don't have to work overtime to pay bills but If I don't then I would easily find myself eagerly waiting until the next payday to have some money.

Hey guys I was just wanting to get people's perspectives about how to make the most out of a nurses' paycheck. I am a RN of nearly 3 years and I needed some advice on how I can stretch my dollars. I don't live an extravagant lifestyle but I get paid on Fri but am nearly broke on Mon!

Hey guys, I was curious how do you deal with obnoxious family members of your patient?! At my hospital we are adopting "family-centered" care. In theory this is great but I must admit that it sucks when you have annoying family members that write down everything you do, interrogate you on meeds (i.e. asking what each and every pill is even though they have been getting the same med for a while), and try to tell you how to do your job, ect. I have been in nursing for a little over a year now and I see this as just a part of bedside nursing. However, at times I feel it gets out of hand when I ( a licensed medical professional) feel like I'm being bossed around simply because family centered care and trying to please. I have considered moving to the O.R. to get down to doing my job and not being sidetracked by crap like this. I'd appreciate your thoughts on this one.

Yea I can definitely relate. I've been on a unit where patients stay for about a month or so and its soooooo easy to get bored! No...I don't want to feel like I"m walking on pins and needles all the time but variety can be good!

Hey Man! While reading your post I was reminded of my preceptorship that just ended not too long ago. This was my final quarter and I worked at a pediatric ICU with a nurse who graduated school herself a couple years ago. I swear we have a lot of things in common as far as our preceptors go!!! During my shifts, there were plenty of times where I would be waiting for the outgoing PM nurse to meet me and my nurse to give report. However, my nurse would simply leave and as soon as I find her..............she is getting report from the outgoing nurse!! I always felt that it is bad enough for me to be working for free essentially for my last clinical hours of nursing school, but to be ignored by my own preceptor sucks even more. Also, I had a hard time with communicating with her because I often had to initiate conversation or asked questions just to talk. I truly believe that if I didn't initiate anything then I would be working with this lady for 12 hours and barely saying anything unless it was absolutely patient-related. I was also a little nervous since my preceptor was just a couple years older than me, but I figured she would be more relatable ........NOT!!! I really am not sure if she didn't like precepting (this was her first time) or me, but we did not mesh well in my opinion. I tried plenty of times to connect with her by asking her for advice on jobs, school experiences, ect. but that didn't help much. Like I said, she barely even talked to me. Despite all this I kept on and got finished with all my hours. Even though I was horribly broke, I still scraped up some money to give her a gift card and a thank you card to show my appreciation. Even when it was time for her to give me my final eval and me to give her the card...she just acted kinda "funny". She seemed like she didn't care about my stupid card or that I was obligated to give her something. When I had my evaluation with my instructor I was told about what my RN said ( I didn't read it even though I could have easily done so). Apparently my nurse didn't have many nice things to say. She said that she didn't feel like the ICU was "right for me" and that I lacked critical thinking skills!!!!! In my mind I'm like "what the freak?!!!!!". She obviously thought that me asking questions translated into me not having any freaking idea of what I'm doing. As I told my teacher, I ask questions so I learn/clarify and also to maintain safety for the patient. I was a practicum student but guess what.....I'm still just that ........a STUDENT! Honestly, I think that mentoring a student was not right for her. My dream is to work in pediatrics but obviously the way things are right now I'm going to take anything after I graduate (this upcoming Saturday!!!!!!). But one thing I would love to do is to call her whenever I land an ICU job and tell her that despite her opinion of the ICU not being right for me I followed through with my dream. I guess at times we get so caught up in having our self esteem be so dependent on what others think about us, especially people like preceptors, nurses on the unit, ect. However, at the end of the day it is all about you and what you believe. You are obviously smart and are the way to a bright future. Don't let that sorry excuse of a preceptor or anybody else stop what you have worked sooooo hard for! Remember, as long as you are taking care of your patients that is all that matters. I wish you all the best and will be praying for you. Hang in there!!!!!!!