Registered Nurse - An Amazing Career Choice
Being a registered nurse is an amazing career choice. Nurses are provided with many different options and exciting opportunities within specific specialties. One of these options which appeals to many dedicated professionals is that of surgical nursing. There are several specialties within surgical nursing one can obtain. Within surgical nursing one will find these types of career choice opportunities; a scrub nurse, a circulating nurse, and and RN first assistant. These three distinct examples of surgical nurses have different jobs in order to maintain the cleanliness of the OR, the health and safety of the patient and proper assistance to the surgeon in order to make sure he/she is performing at their best. The one that will be focused on today is the duties of the scrub nurse.
Scrub nurses have several responsibilities within their job description. Each of these responsibilities are imperative to the safety and health of not only the patient but the surgeons and other nurses in the room. A great scrub nurse sees their job as the first line of defense in the fight again germs and disorganization that can lead to critical mistakes and consequences. If not done properly their job can literally mean life or death for someone. These are the nurses you see on TV handing instruments to doctors during surgery. Yet their job has so much more to it than just what you see on TV.
Some of the other duties of scrub nurses are just as if not more important than handing the doctor the right instrument at the right time. These nurses are also responsible to set up equipment for the upcoming surgery and do the count to make sure everything is ready and accounted for. They check and count equipment (sponges and instruments) during surgery as well. Scrub nurses help dress the doctors for a sterile environment gloving and gowning them. They will drape the patient the correct way for the procedure. They will set up other necessary equipment such as suction tip and tube, sutures and needles. During the procedure the scrub nurse will provide 2 sponges on operating site, pass the knives and other equipment needed to the surgeon and the surgeon's assistant, watch the surgery to anticipate the needs of the surgeons, and generally maintain a sterile environment and equipment. After the surgery the nurse will recount the instruments and sponges and inform the surgeon of the count. Then clear away instruments, help apply dressings, degown, prepare the patient for the recovery room and complete documentation. Lastly the nurse will pass the patient on to recovery room.
As you can see scrub nurses are a vital person in surgery. A good scrub nurse will be like gold to a surgeon and they will desire to only work with the ones they know well. They will begin to know the surgeons and anticipate their needs before the surgeon does. This can make for an excellent working relationship. These nurses need to know how to keep up with the pace and yet still maintain cleanliness and order. This is an excellent career for anyone interested in the nursing field. A scrub nurse will have lots of exciting opportunities and meet many interesting people in their career.
