Perioperative Nurses' Health
It seems that these days, all current nurses are worried about the future of nursing.
The researchers are worried about our relevancy.
The educators are worried about clinical placement.
The elders are either looking forward to retirement or stressing about leaving too soon.
The mid-group is looking around for support.
The youth don't even know where to look.
And our students are lost, scared, and wondering why they got themselves into this mess?
It's hard to practice what you preach when doctors are not the only person you must satisfy. Most often, nurses are working for the patient, the family, the charge nurse, management, and higher ups, while still focusing on minute details that could mean life or death.
So how then, can nurses really focus on their own lives and creating a work environment that will best support all involved?
In my short experience, both in life and in the perioperative field, those who are present are the most successful, well-liked, and happy.
What does being present in the operating room look like?
It looks like open communication, appropriate nonverbal language, anticipation, and appreciation.
Speaking without fear of retaliation, however silly, with respect and honesty, most surgical teams can work through even the worst of circumstances.
Think of the last time you didn't realize the patient would bleed an (un)expected amount. How many fingers were pointed until the type and screen was drawn? How many minutes were wasted on who would order? What relationships were harmed?
Speaking through your eyes comes naturally to us, as we work through 8 or 12 hours without the bottom half of our face. But what matters is the expression and the attitude that is wrought with those eyes.
Think of the last time you felt uncomfortable with your surgical team. Was there a verbal fight, or were your eyes enough to express you concern in the surgeons' ability to work, the anesthesia providers' ability to manage pressures, the scrub techs' ability to know their field, or your ability to work quickly?
When the nurse, scrub tech, anesthesia provider, and surgeon can anticipate the needs of the patient and others in the room, everything seems to flow and there is an empathetic environment which everyone feels at home.
Think of the last time you looked up and the field was red. Think of the last time you had to probe anesthesia to take a hemoglobin. Think of the last time your surgeon requested everything while you were prepping. How did that make you feel? How did the rest of the day go?
And finally, appreciate. Much like empathy, appreciating what the other members of your team must go through to get the room ready means you will take on extra roles and collectively the team will win.
If you can appreciate the work anesthesia does at the beginning of the case, helping them put on the bair hugger when they're drawing up the antibiotic feels less like a favor and more of a high five. If you can appreciate the 4 pages your resident just got, probably vague or actually urgent, you're more likely to take on the role of positioning while they stand on the phone. Appreciate that your scrub tech will stand for the next 6 hours and allow them the opportunity to leave the room while you do things that they cannot.
Be present. Ask not what your team can do for you, but what can you do for your team? Because you want your team to win right?
Winning in the operating room. What does that look like?
To me, it's the difference between my surgeons leaving at 5 or 7, making it to dinner with the family or crawling into their bed trying to not wake their spouse.
It means a lot to be able to help. That's why I became a nurse.
It takes a lot to want to be the one responsible. That's why I became a perioperative nurse.
It makes me happy to look after my patient, my scrub tech, my surgeon, and my anesthesia provider.
That's why I love what I do.
The researchers are worried about our relevancy.
The educators are worried about clinical placement.
The elders are either looking forward to retirement or stressing about leaving too soon.
The mid-group is looking around for support.
The youth don't even know where to look.
And our students are lost, scared, and wondering why they got themselves into this mess?
It's hard to practice what you preach when doctors are not the only person you must satisfy. Most often, nurses are working for the patient, the family, the charge nurse, management, and higher ups, while still focusing on minute details that could mean life or death.
So how then, can nurses really focus on their own lives and creating a work environment that will best support all involved?
In my short experience, both in life and in the perioperative field, those who are present are the most successful, well-liked, and happy.
What does being present in the operating room look like?
It looks like open communication, appropriate nonverbal language, anticipation, and appreciation.
Speaking without fear of retaliation, however silly, with respect and honesty, most surgical teams can work through even the worst of circumstances.
Think of the last time you didn't realize the patient would bleed an (un)expected amount. How many fingers were pointed until the type and screen was drawn? How many minutes were wasted on who would order? What relationships were harmed?
Speaking through your eyes comes naturally to us, as we work through 8 or 12 hours without the bottom half of our face. But what matters is the expression and the attitude that is wrought with those eyes.
Think of the last time you felt uncomfortable with your surgical team. Was there a verbal fight, or were your eyes enough to express you concern in the surgeons' ability to work, the anesthesia providers' ability to manage pressures, the scrub techs' ability to know their field, or your ability to work quickly?
When the nurse, scrub tech, anesthesia provider, and surgeon can anticipate the needs of the patient and others in the room, everything seems to flow and there is an empathetic environment which everyone feels at home.
Think of the last time you looked up and the field was red. Think of the last time you had to probe anesthesia to take a hemoglobin. Think of the last time your surgeon requested everything while you were prepping. How did that make you feel? How did the rest of the day go?
And finally, appreciate. Much like empathy, appreciating what the other members of your team must go through to get the room ready means you will take on extra roles and collectively the team will win.
If you can appreciate the work anesthesia does at the beginning of the case, helping them put on the bair hugger when they're drawing up the antibiotic feels less like a favor and more of a high five. If you can appreciate the 4 pages your resident just got, probably vague or actually urgent, you're more likely to take on the role of positioning while they stand on the phone. Appreciate that your scrub tech will stand for the next 6 hours and allow them the opportunity to leave the room while you do things that they cannot.
Be present. Ask not what your team can do for you, but what can you do for your team? Because you want your team to win right?
Winning in the operating room. What does that look like?
To me, it's the difference between my surgeons leaving at 5 or 7, making it to dinner with the family or crawling into their bed trying to not wake their spouse.
It means a lot to be able to help. That's why I became a nurse.
It takes a lot to want to be the one responsible. That's why I became a perioperative nurse.
It makes me happy to look after my patient, my scrub tech, my surgeon, and my anesthesia provider.
That's why I love what I do.
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