ErinRad

Hey there! Congrats! Going into the heart room for the first time, my advice is: don't get overwhelemed. You'll be bombarded the first few weeks with positioning, electrocautery, suture, instruments, blood products, bipass, drugs, central lines, art lines, not to mention all the different procedures and implants etc. Just try to pick up on what is the SAME with each case not what is DIFFERENT. Then, once you get the basics down, you'll realize that every case has a foundation that is the same and details that are different. Try to learn the flow of the room and the order in which steps are taken. These things won't change. For example, EVERY case will be: patient comes in, goes to sleep, lines are placed, positioning, prep, procedure, closing, dressing and end. Remember this and then, even when you are given your general OR training, you will be able to take the basic foundation that you've learned and apply it to almost any type of case!

thank you all so much! i knew our or wasn't the only one with animosity between the shifts. it's just nice to hear that other nurses are dealing with the same negative attitudes. and gadgetrn71 you're right, the ladies on the night shift crew are much closer to each other than anyone on daylight. we have to be. it's just three of us at night so we have to have each other's backs.

So basically I'm looking for other nurses that work steady nights in the OR that can offer some encouragment. I have been on steady nights in the operating room for close to three years now and recently I have heard from my coworkers and even from managment that the nurses on daylight are complaining that the night shift doesn't do anything. It just really hurts that the daylight feels that the night shift doesn't contribute anything worth while to the unit. They say things like "they just sit around and socialize" or "they're so lazy." I mean, who do they think sets up all the rooms for the next day and irons out any issues with the next days elective schedule? Did I forget to mention we are a level 1 trauma center and the night shift nurses have to be ready for anything?! I just want to know that other nurses feel the same way and deal with similar attitudes from the daylight OR crew. Thanks!