Student curious about best steps to OR

[golc0004]

I'm currently in an accelerated nursing program in FL. I will be finished June 2007. I really want to end up being a perioperative nurse as soon as possible after graduation. Most programs around here require atleast one year experience as a R.N. I have read of a variety of choices to start at after passing the boards, but I would like to here the opinions of experienced OR nurses. Do you think I should start at med/surg, critical care, or some other area? Do you have any other suggestions for me to do while I am in school? I have just applied for a student membership to the AORN. Thanks for your time

[elainee2000]

Best steps to OR might be going to the ICU first. If you are a quick study and pay attention to details, you might be able to handle ICU. It's going to be hard at first and there is alot to remember. I work in OR now as a Circulator. I do not scrub nor do I want to. I also continue to work in ICU, because I don't want to lose the valuable skills it took years to develop. I like to work in both places. I find that being a Critical Care nurse is very valuable knowledge in the OR and the surgeons like having a nurse with that kind of expertise in their surgery suites with them.

good luck!

[edendms]

I practice in Massachusetts and am not familiar with what is available there, but we have one local (in Boston) college that offers a perioperative training program, I believe set up using the AORN program. We traditionally will not hire new grads, but have hired a couple people who had no clinical OR experience other than completing this program. I would suggest looking into the availability of that kind of program. Personally I completed exactly 364 days on an oncology floor before coming to the OR and I have been an OR nurse for 18 years! Love it...keep your focus and do a year first if you have to, it's worth it. I would suggest a post-op surgical floor for that experience if you need to go to a floor first. At lease that will help you focus on surgery. Good luck!

[TexasAggie43]

I'm currently in an accelerated nursing program in FL. I will be finished June 2007. I really want to end up being a perioperative nurse as soon as possible after graduation. Most programs around here require atleast one year experience as a R.N. I have read of a variety of choices to start at after passing the boards, but I would like to here the opinions of experienced OR nurses. Do you think I should start at med/surg, critical care, or some other area? Do you have any other suggestions for me to do while I am in school? I have just applied for a student membership to the AORN. Thanks for your time

I have been an O.R. nurse for twenty years. If you want to be all that you can be in the O.R.,go to a floor, preterably med-surg or ICU. The O.R. can be a very intimadating place to work.It has been said that you need a thick skin to work there. I've seen nurses that can't even start an IV. When you take call in the O.R., there are no resource people there for you, therefore you need to be able to function in all capacities. One other thing, if and when you get to the O.R., make sure you get a great preceptor. That person can make you a great O.R. nurse. I hope this has been helpful and good luck in all your endeavors.

[nurseOR]

Now is a great time to get trained in the OR. When I started 20 years ago, it was difficult to find hospitals that would train new grads. But the OR now has one of the oldest, close to retirement staffs, among all the specialties, so...many places are looking for candidates. I regretted not having the experience of working ICU or the floors first, before I started in the OR, for many years. Please do that first. I found the hospital that trained me by going to the library and just calling all the hospitals in a radius of where I wanted to work. I expect the window of opportunity to easily get into the OR to close in about 4 years. Once people get in, they usually stay for the life of their career. (Unless you new kids are different, which is possible!)

[Susan Wright]

hello.

I am a registered nurse in Australia. I had a long background in cardiothoracic intensive care before moving to cardiao thoracic operating room. I recommend as others have conferred, maybe go to ICU or a high dependacy surgical ward for a while. Learn some ICU skills and airway management. You do need a thick skin in theatre but most of all you need lots of education and a bit more experience. It will stand you in good stead for going to theatre in the future. Once you get there do a perioperative course. There is much to learn. best of luck

[scrubnurseshelbie]

I worked on an ortho unit for 1 1/2 years before I switched to the OR. I found that experience to be very valuable and it helped hone my problem solving skills. Sometimes in the OR you need to be able to think quickly and know exactly what the sterile field might need without a lot of direction. For example, if a patient is bleeding, you need to be able to think what they might need without interrupting the surgeon or waiting for them to tell you...they need whatever it might be RIGHTNOW!! And the circulating nurse needs to be able to prioritize. Good luck with your decision!