StudentKari12

Thank you all for your encouragement and support, and also for providing some reasons for why my experience went the way that it did. I have not heard anything back yet, but I have decided to take the job if I get it and see how it goes, don't really have a lot to lose! I've always been intruiged by the OR and would love to be able to support patients through such a stressful time, while working in such a fast-paced and exciting environment. I actually had a minor surgical procedure done yesterday (it's been a busy week!) and realized how much I appreciated the kind nurses that I had at my side T/O, as I felt anxious and very vulnerable - they were great! It reinforced for me why I wanted to work in the OR in the first place, to be able to be that person for someone else. Anyhow... Thank you to those who posted and I will let ya know how it goes :)

I am looking for a little insight or advice from anyone who wishes to provide it. For about a year now I have been working towards getting an interview in the operating room as an employed student nurse, to later work there after graduation. As it turns out, there may not be an in-house training program for this upcoming year as there has been for quite some time. There are many new graduates and a mix of skill levels, which as I understand needs to be addressed before bringing in some more newbies. Anyhow, I finally got an interview for the position I had been hoping for. I have taken a perioperative specialty course, written papers in my regular nursing courses (I am a 3rd year BSN student), and talked to as many people as I could with hopes of networking and finally getting that interview. Obviously I was quite nervous, but I was prepared and dressed professionally. I went in with a smile on my face and I felt confident. I was up against 2 other applicants, and not only am I a year ahead of them but I have much more experience having taken the specialty course. First of all, I am mildly claustraphobic in small rooms. The interview was in a small, hot room with no windows with three formidable-looking OR nurses sitting infront of me (not smiling, I might add). They began to ask me questions rotating through the panel. From the very beginning, I felt no warmth or encouragement. I understand that it is a professional job interview, but I am also still a student so I guess I expected a bit of support, understanding, or encouragement (I received none). They began to ask me questions, to which I believe I responded as well as I possibly could have. I talked about things I had learned in my perioperative course, BSN program, and experiences. I did so with professionalism and a smile on my face. I honestly felt like the nurses sitting infront of me wanted fail this interview. They were cold, blunt, and what appeared to me to be unfriendly. They started to ask me about my availability, and when I told them that it would have to work around my school schedule, so after my 2 month practicum then around my regular nursing courses, they said this would be a problem. I'm not really sure what gives with the attitude I received, particularly when I was so warm and friendly the entire time. Are they trying to test me? I understand that the OR is a tough environment to work in, but now I'm rethinking the entire thing. Furthermore, I just started my practicum on a medical floor today and I absolutely LOVE it despite initially thinking I would hate it - the people are wonderful, and very supportive of new grads. So what I'm mostly wondering is... Should I take the job if I get a call back? Will things get better? Or will I continue to have to stare into the face of adversity and be expected to succeed? Will I be supported as a student or be treated as a nuisance? I'm not really sure who to turn to for unbiased advice, as I know a lot of nurses feel 'certain ways' towards the OR, however this is always something I have taken with a grain of salt. Honest answers, advice, or input would be greatly appreciated. And I strongly commend you on being able to deal with those 'colourful' personalities in your line of work Thanks in advance.

Just had an interview for an employed student nurse position the other day, this is what they asked me: 1. What qualifications/experience do you have to work in the OR 2. Why do you want to work in the OR? 3. How do you handle stress in your life? 4. How do you handle emergency situations? 5. Can you think of a conflict that you have been involved in and how you handled it? That's all I can remember for now. Just be yourself and try to be confident (even if you are not feeling it, pretend to be!) Good luck! Edit: 6. Where do you get information from about policies and procedures?

Wow, really awesome to find this thread. I am a third year nursing student and am currently trying to plan out the final 1.5 years of my nursing program. I am trying to get a position as an employed student nurse this summer, and taking two perioperatives courses through British Columbia Institute of Technology to give me a head-start. The hospital I will be working at after graduation most likely does offer an OR preceptorship in the final semester with the promise of 1 year after graduation, and I've heard rumours that they either pay for your preceptorship or pay for your specialty upgrading courses as well. Lots of opportunities for overtime and holidays and I need to pay off some pretty significant student loans here once I'm done. Anyways, despite pursuing this little dream I have cooked up, I've been hearing a lot of criticism regarding attempting to obtain a job in the OR as a new grad. I try to ignore these negative (though merited and perhaps true) comments, and stick to the belief that if I say that I am going to do it I will. I am pretty much going on blind faith here and hoping that I get a break after 4 years of working at a restaurant part-time and going to nursing school. As I'm sure you all understand, it can be very stressful at times. Anyways, almost done. Thank you for the inadvertant encouragement through your posts :) I wish the best of luck to all of you with your shiny new OR jobs! Hope to be in your shoes down the road here!

Hello Sarah, Was Googling ESN OR opportunities (I'm impatient) and your post came up. Incidentally, I am a member of this site as well :) Thought I would respond to your post as your situation is very similar to mine... I am currently in 3rd year BSN program on Vancouver Island in BC (). I just finished up a surgical rotation last semester, currently in community (). I have been thinking about trying to get into the OR for quite some time, I officially made my mind up around 2 months ago and applied to a distance perioperative course (BCIT offers a program, though it's not recognized through ORNAC...). I am taking only the first two courses in the program, as I'm hoping it will help my chances in getting an ESN position over the summer. I encourage you to try to apply (to the ESN program), as this will be a great opportunity to get more experience in the OR and see if you could really envision yourself working there, or if you just got caught up in the excitement and novelty (something I tossed around for a while, as I had preconceived notions/excitement about the OR in first year and wanted to make sure I was serious about it). I'm sure your school of nursing will require you to have nursing electives - you should see if they would give you credit for electives from another institution (such as the BCIT perioperative courses, for example). Anyways, just wanted to pass along some information to you. I have spent a lot of time coming up with this "plan", and if all goes well I should be in my final practicum/preceptorship in the OR in one year from now. :w00t: I hope you enjoy your surgical rotation. Try to get as much out of it as possible: volunteer to do skills, offer your assistance, ask questions, and most importantly... ask for help when needed! Take advantage of being a student while you're still a student; something cool going on in the OR? Ask your instructor to follow the patient through! In my experience, some instructors can be very unsupportive of OR goals... don't let it daunt you. If that really is your passion, make it clear and try to get as many opportunities as possible. Best of luck to you, -- Kari, BSN3

Hello all, I have found some very helpful information and advice on this site, so I am hoping some of you may be able to help shed some light on something I've been thinking about for a while. I am currently in my 3rd year of my BSN program at a university in British Columbia, Canada. My goal at the end of my nursing program will be to land myself a spot in the OR preceptorship program that my university offers in collaboration with the local regional hospital here in town, so that I will be working as a novice OR nurse by the time I am done school. I have a choice of one more practicum placement in the hospital before my final practicum which will hopefully be in the OR. So here's my question: Does anyone have any idea what may be a good practicum placement for me, given that I plan on going into OR nursing? I have had previous placements on a medical/CVA specialty floor, medical/telemetry floor, and general surgery floor. I have narrowed it down to the following options so far for this practicum... - Ortho surgical floor - PARR/PACU - Step-down unit on a general surgery floor I would like to have the opportunity to perform a number of skills and see as much as I can in this placement, as I will be back in the community after this and then into my final practicum. Any comments are welcome. I understand that all do not support students going right into the OR, but given what is going on right now where I live on med/surg floors (RNs losing jobs to LPNs/job shortages), that a preceptorship program does exist in my area, and that OR nursing has been my dream and goal for quite some time, I do have my heart set on this. Any suggestions pertaining to possible practicum placements that may be seen as beneficial are welcome. -- Kari, BSN3