JOB TITLE: Registered Nurse – OR Circulating - NWSC
REPORTS TO: Clinical Administrator/Clinical Supervisor
JOB SUMMARY
The Operating Room (OR) Circulating Registered Nurse (RN) provides comprehensive, safe, efficient, and individualized nursing care to patients throughout the perioperative experience. The RN is accountable for the assessment, nursing diagnosis, planning, implementation, evaluation, coordination, education, and documentation of care related to actual or potential physical and psychosocial responses to anesthesia, surgical procedures, and other operative interventions.
The Circulating RN serves as the patient’s advocate and promotes continuity of care through safe patient preparation, education, intraoperative care, and transition or discharge. The RN collaborates with surgeons, anesthesia providers, surgical technologists, the Clinical Supervisor, Clinical Administrator, and other members of the perioperative team to promote patient safety, aseptic practice, effective communication, efficient operating room workflow, and adherence to established nursing standards, policies, and procedures.
Responsible for supervising: Surgical Technologists and other ancillary clinical personnel as assigned within established delegation requirements.
JOB REQUIREMENTS
- Current, unrestricted Registered Nurse license authorizing practice in Wyoming, or an applicable multistate license issued under the Nurse Licensure Compact.
- CNOR preferred.
EXPERIENCE
- Prefer minimum one-year experience as a perioperative nurse – scrubbing skills preferred.
- Scrub experience or demonstrated scrub competency preferred.
SKILLS
- Must possess a high degree of confidentiality in all matters with the ability to manage sensitive and confidential situations with tact, professionalism, and diplomacy.
- Must be able to interact effectively with a wide variety of people.
- Knowledge of perioperative nursing principles, surgical procedures, aseptic technique, infection control principles, and patient-safety practices.
- Ability to coordinate operating room activities and communicate effectively with surgeons, anesthesia providers, surgical technologists, and other members of the healthcare team.
- Strong patient assessment, critical thinking, clinical judgment, and emergency response skills, with the ability to make timely, appropriate nursing decisions and respond effectively in urgent, rapidly changing, or high-stress situations.
- Knowledge of surgical counts, specimen management, patient positioning, implants, equipment, medications, and intraoperative documentation appropriate to assigned responsibilities.
- Strong communication, organizational, and time-management skills, with a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail. Self-motivated, dependable, and able to effectively prioritize and manage multiple tasks in a timely manner.
- Effective computer and keyboarding skills.
- Must have ability to learn and use Microsoft Office Suite products including Outlook.
- Ability to learn new computer software applications.
- Knowledge of medical and surgical terminology.
- Exercise sound judgment and decision-making skills on behalf of patients, self and peers.
- Able to circulate in all areas of the OR.
REQUIRED CERTIFICATIONS
BLS, ACLS, and PALS required (AHA).
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
- Perform and document an appropriate nursing assessment upon receipt of the patient in the operating room and continuously evaluate the patient's condition throughout the intraoperative phase.
- Verify patient identity, procedure, surgical site, consent, allergies, required documentation, and other elements of the Center's safe-surgery process prior to the procedure.
- Participate actively in required pre-procedure verification, surgical time-out, and sign-out processes and immediately address identified discrepancies or safety concerns.
- Develop, implement, evaluate, and document the intraoperative nursing plan of care based upon the patient's condition, procedure, and identified needs.
- Serve as the patient's advocate and protect the patient's safety, privacy, dignity, positioning, skin integrity, and confidentiality throughout the intraoperative experience.
- Communicate pertinent patient information and changes in condition promptly to the surgeon, anesthesia provider, and other appropriate members of the perioperative team.
- Carry out provider orders accurately and timely and document medications, specimens, implants, devices, interventions, and other required intraoperative information.
- Coordinate operating room activities and support safe, efficient progression of the surgical procedure while maintaining appropriate communication with the surgical team.
- Maintain and monitor aseptic technique and sterile-field integrity and take appropriate action when contamination or breaks in technique are identified.
- Perform and document required surgical counts in collaboration with the surgical technologist or other qualified team members in accordance with policy.
- Coordinate safe patient positioning, transfer, pressure-injury prevention, application of safety devices, and use of positioning equipment appropriate to the procedure and patient needs.
- Manage and document specimens in accordance with policy, including appropriate identification, labeling, handling, and transfer.
- Manage and document implants, medications, solutions, equipment, and supplies used during the procedure in accordance with policy and applicable requirements.
- Ensure required equipment, supplies, medications, and emergency resources are available and functional for assigned procedures and promptly communicate identified concerns.
- Recognize changes in patient condition and initiate appropriate nursing interventions and emergency response measures within RN scope of practice.
- Provide safe and complete handoff communication to PACU or the receiving clinical area at the conclusion of the procedure.
- Follow infection-prevention, bloodborne-pathogen, hazardous-material, sharps-safety, medication-safety, and personal protective equipment requirements.
SECONDARY FUNCTIONS
- Pursues own professional growth through continuing education and in-services.
- Communicate effectively with staff, peers, director, external and internal customers.
- Participate in performance improvement activities.
- Participate in orientation, mentoring, staff education, and competency activities as assigned.
- Participate in Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI), infection prevention, safety, emergency preparedness, staff education, meetings, and other Center activities as assigned.
- Provide appropriate direction, delegation, and supervision to surgical technologists and other ancillary clinical personnel as assigned and consistent with applicable requirements and policy.
- Occasional Charge Nurses duties assigned by Supervisor.
- Assists in ordering supplies and performing inventory as assigned.
- Verify supplies are stocked and put away in the appropriate location.
- Supervise ancillary staff as needed.
- Participate in departmental meetings.
- Adhere to standards of safety and infection control in delivery of patient care.
- Assist with orientation of new employees in the department.
- Work with other departments in coordinating smooth transfer of patients.
- Prints preference cards and pulls cases as assigned/needed.
- Ensure all rooms and work areas are kept clean, stocked, and ready for use.
- Complete daily department tasks, monthly outdates, and survey compliance checks as scheduled.
- Manage and document implants, medications, solutions, equipment, and supplies used during the procedure in accordance with policy and applicable requirements.
- Assist in other clinical areas when appropriately trained and competency-validated and when consistent with RN licensure and scope of practice.
- Perform other nursing responsibilities assigned by the Clinical Supervisor or Clinical Administrator and appropriate to the individual's education, licensure, training, competency, and scope of practice.
