What are the advantages and disadvantages of being a PAT RN?

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I have had two interviews for a PAT RN position and am looking for some feedback from nurses who do this full-time. Thanks!

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Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.

How about if you first tell us what PAT stands for?

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.
How about if you first tell us what PAT stands for?

In Epic, it's a Pre Admission Testing nurse.

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Pre-admission testing RN.

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It's at a day surgery center.

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Why do people ask questions using acronyms whose meaning isn't immediately obvious to the general audience of the forum?

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I am seeking advice from RN's who know what a PAT RN is...thanks!

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This is a general nursing forum, not a clandestine PAT nursing forum. The reason that threads are public are so that everybody reading can benefit from them.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.

I am a PAT nurse and I love it. Do you have any specific questions?

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Specializes in OR.

I am a pre-op nurse and I periodically wander (am assigned :-) ) to PAT, because the position is currently vacant. It's a nice change-up. The way we do it, your pre-ops are conducted primarily over the phone. My tiny rural hospital does a lot of "surgery center"type stuff so there can be a lot of small cases. Occasionally we will see a person in the flesh because they are there for labs and such related to the surgery. The hardest part is extracting the x-rays and test results from the doctor's offices.It is primarily a desk job, but the schedule is M-F. So that is nice.

The downside is that if desk work is not your thing (I'm too hyper and fidgety to sit all day.) it might be a little boring. i think it all depends on what you are looking for in a job and whether you have some surgical experience (knowing what's involved in the procedures as well as why a person might need certain testing is handy) In spite of it being a lot of data entry (we use Cerner) a nurse is required due to the amount of clinical knowledge required. All in all, a pretty low-stress position.

Hopefully this helps...

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Thank you! That was the exactly what I was looking for. Your information was very helpful!

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Do you stay busy all the time? Also, what percent of your day do you spend on the phone?

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