I heard a conversation a surgeon and a new ST were having at the field one day while I was giving a lunch break. The tech was saying how she was probably going to nursing school, and that when she was an RN, she would only be a circulating nurse in the OR, not any other area. The surgeon replied: : "A circulator? Why would you want to do that?? No self respecting nurse would want to be a circulator. Why? to get yelled at by the managers that your not documenting enough? Be a real nurse, take care of patients"
I thought I liked this guy, too.... I just cant *not* be offended by this. Am I being too sensitive? Do surgeons in general look at us in the OR as not "real" nurses? I feel like telling every nurse I work with what he said, because everybody raves about how much they like working with him....
I have always been fascinated by surgical procedures but after being in GYN surgery as a circulator for 18 months now I have not found a reason yet to stay there past my contract commitment time. I find many of the staff have self-esteem issues because being a circulator is about circulating the room helping the tech and surgeon with what they need to do the procedure and not so much about patient care as in bedside nursing, the CRNA handles patient care. And I have also gotten the similar remarks from Trauma nurses. I like the autonomy of being in the OR yet don't feel satisfied with environment. Surgeons, techs, RN's and CRNA's always have something to complain about. I guess thats why so many rag on OR nurses and feel we aren't worthy of respect. How wrong they are. We do our best so the paitent can thrive.
When I rotated through an OR, I said the same thing in my head, NO not what the surgeon said but "All they seem to do is document and make sure qthing is in place." Documentation is important and definitely a part of nursing. I just wouldnt want to work in the OR.
Do not spread the surgeon's words throughout the work place.. You are asking for trouble if you do so....
WOW! You all rock! Yes we are important because we are the unresponsive patient's advocate when they need us most! The Docs that make those stupid comments are the ones who love to have an opinion just to show their ignorance/ego. How many of us catch the fact that no antibiotics have been ordered, or the permit is wrong, or that labwork is wacked and surgery might be detrimental to the patient? As one of you said- we cover their butts! We are legislating for RN in the OR in my state so this discussion is near and dear to my heart:heartbeat. We are not just trained monkeys as one of my docs said, we are trained, professional, critical thinkers who are the number #1 patient advocate! End of story.
I have yet to work where the circulator wasn't an RN!
It is the most rewarding and challenging jobs in nursing that I have ever done and don't want to work anywhere else (even with the crap dished out by over-pompous humans with a degree and no social skills) Most surgeons are awesome humans and it is a .....shame that just a few ruin perfectly good reptuations of hundreds of outstanding men and women.
If the guy has always been nice to you and treats everyone decent I would give him a pass. Maybe he was just saying what he thought the other person wanted to hear.
Also, as a surgeon he most likely has no idea what nursing really entails. Maybe you could start a conversation with him sometime and enlighten him a bit.
Hi gonzo1, There are a some older, set in there ways, surgeons, who think that they deserve more respect than they give. They complain about most things and think that by belittling others, they are teaching, just like they got taught! You are right, no self-respecting MD speaks to others that way. Like us, they appreciate good help and often say "Thank You" for your help today. I always say "thank you" or "I had a wonderful day" to the scrubs and CRNA's I work with for the day if it is a fact. Without teamwork from all of us, it would just be another day. I work mostly with people who help each other, including surgeons. Its those few UNprofessionals that make your day Hell. We return the next day because we hope we can get assigned to the ones who DO care about having a successful day.
I have always been fascinated by surgical procedures but after being in GYN surgery as a circulator for 18 months now I have not found a reason yet to stay there past my contract commitment time. I find many of the staff have self-esteem issues because being a circulator is about circulating the room helping the tech and surgeon with what they need to do the procedure and not so much about patient care as in bedside nursing, the CRNA handles patient care. And I have also gotten the similar remarks from Trauma nurses. I like the autonomy of being in the OR yet don't feel satisfied with environment. Surgeons, techs, RN's and CRNA's always have something to complain about. I guess thats why so many rag on OR nurses and feel we aren't worthy of respect. How wrong they are. We do our best so the paitent can thrive.
I really think that you should try a different OR before you give up on surgery. They are all similar but not a one is the same anywhere.............and one person can make a difference....
i have been a certified surgical technologist and certified first assistant for over 13 years. i am now finishing up my last term in nursing school with honors and plan to return to my home, the operating room. eventually, it is my goal to get some experience on a tele or med/surg floor. in the years that i have spent in the o.r., i have always had a great respect and cohesiveness with the nurses in my unit, barring the occasional rude and condescending one.
it was incredibly ignorant and disrespectful for the surg. tech and surgeon to have made the comments that they did. it is also however, equally disrespectful for those of you whom have chosen to use it as an excuse to belittle and subjugate the value of the surgical technology profession as a whole. without reservation, i can state that i have learned as much about patient care from the nurses as they have learned from me. in fact, almost every nurse that i have known in those years has learned to scrub in on cases and become proficient as a result of a surgical technologist that has graciously shared those skills.
this sort of dialog is hurtful and back-biting to the entire surgical team. for any of us to say that we would be better off without the other is ignorant and obtuse. i guarantee that if you sat down a surg. tech and a nurse with identical o.r. years of experience and challenged them to pass the others exam… that they each would have a difficult time at it. i suggest that instead of making broad statements about the entire profession because of a few ignorant individuals. perhaps take an assessment of all the good experiences that you have had as well. you, rn, are not the only one doing the counting and so called saving the surgeons behind. you are not the only one, preparing and planning ahead to assure that the case goes smoothly and that patient safety is ensured. you are not the only one subject to the ignorant remarks of small minds.
have you considered the disrespectful things that are said from your side of the sterile field? i have heard on many occasions an rn say, “oh, he’s just a scrub tech.” oh, and using your licensure as a tool to disrespect the cst and pct’s is no different from some of the dr’s so many of you complain about. let’s practice what we preach.
since i have been on the floor, i have heard on several occasions floor nurses stating that o.r. nurses aren’t “real” nurses. each and every time i have politely put them in their place by demonstrating the skills and incite that i have learned by way of working side by side with circulating nurses in the o.r. i have different and enlightened perspective coming from a surg. tech background. i wish we could all treat each other with the same respect and compassion we hope to deliver to our patients.
Yeah I wanted so bad to tell her that she's not any kind of nurse but no need to have my cases sabotaged tomorrow just for being right.
I understand where you are coming from,, but if you look up the definition of a nurse, you will find that more people are nurses than you may have previously figured. However, a Registered Nurse is quite a different thing.
Nurse
1. somebody caring for patients: somebody trained to look after sick or injured people, especially somebody who works in a hospital or clinic, administering the care and treatment that a doctor prescribes
that is a ditto from me................sometimes techs forget:banghead: (who butters the bread and ices their cake).
I have yet to see any scrub tech do a case without a circulator.
Hrrmmm,,, did you just say that the cake is what the Surg Tech contributes to the equation? That you are the icing on the cake? With that logic is seems that the Scrub is building the house and the Circ is decorating it... Hrmm,,, just kidding by the way.
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annaone23
2 Posts
I have always been fascinated by surgical procedures but after being in GYN surgery as a circulator for 18 months now I have not found a reason yet to stay there past my contract commitment time. I find many of the staff have self-esteem issues because being a circulator is about circulating the room helping the tech and surgeon with what they need to do the procedure and not so much about patient care as in bedside nursing, the CRNA handles patient care. And I have also gotten the similar remarks from Trauma nurses. I like the autonomy of being in the OR yet don't feel satisfied with environment. Surgeons, techs, RN's and CRNA's always have something to complain about. I guess thats why so many rag on OR nurses and feel we aren't worthy of respect. How wrong they are. We do our best so the paitent can thrive.