Registered Nurse - Operating Room

Pay Range:

Pay Range:$41.66 - $58.69 *****************************************************************************
$25K Sign On and $10K Relocation for qualified hire!
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Responsible for the delivery of safe, effective, and quality patient-family centered care in the OR and other areas of perioperative services for all patient populations.

SEARHC is a non-profit health consortium which serves the health interests of the residents of Southeast Alaska. We see our employees as our strongest assets. It is our priority to further their development and our organization by aiding in their professional advancement.

Working at SEARHC is more than a job, it’s a fulfilling career. We offer generous benefits, including retirement, paid time off, paid parental leave, health insurance, dental, and vision benefits, life insurance and long and short-term disability, and more.

Key Essential Functions and Accountabilities of the Job

• 50% charge nurse role, 50% primary circulator with on call/call back expectations.

• Initiates treatments, medications, emergency, and resuscitative measures based on appropriate utilization of physicians' pre- and post-op orders, standing orders and post anesthesia protocol.

• Observes interviews and assesses surgery patients during perioperative phase.

• Administers therapeutic measures as prescribed by the anesthesiologist, anesthetist, or surgeon.

• Records observations, nursing interventions, therapeutic measures, and other data relevant to surgical patients in an accurate, efficient, and timely manner.

• Collaborates with members of the surgical and multidisciplinary teams in assessing, planning, and implementing surgical intervention in management of patient’s peri-operative health care.

• Initiates action to reduce, correct, or prevent immediate, ongoing, or potential risks to the patient.

• Seeks out resources when beyond the scope of skill, knowledge, or experience.

• Explains test, procedures, and disease process to patient/significant others; communicates and interacts with patient/significant others in a positive and supportive way; takes steps to decrease stress and/or increase effectiveness of coping mechanisms of patient/significant others.

• Operates and monitors specialized perioperative equipment.

• Monitors patients having surgical procedure under local anesthesia by assessing cardiopulmonary, respiratory, and hemodynamic status and pain levels. Responsible for independent management of patients undergoing local anesthesia.

• Monitors supplies and instruments to assure sterility of materials used furthering Quality Assurance of patient care

Other Functions

• Assists in the orientation of new staff, travelers, and students by sharing knowledge, experience, and verbal encouragement; guides others in choosing nursing intervention, developing skills, and applying knowledge; follows and directs others to follow corporate, hospital, and departmental policies, procedures, and patient care standards.

• Other duties as assigned.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Oversees day to day operations for Pre-Op, OR, PACU under the direction of the Surgery Director.

• Facilitates lunch breaks and helps with room turnover when not acting as a primary circulator.

• Acts as float staff to all perioperative areas when not acting as primary circulator.

• Completes daily staff assignments.

• Organizes the daily surgery schedule.

• Assures that all supplies are put away and cases are pulled for the following day.

• Assures that ORs are set up and ready for the next day’s cases.

• Consistently communicates with the Surgery Director regarding the day to day operations:  staffing, daily schedule, department flow, operational concerns, quality concerns, patient care concerns, staff/physician concerns.

• Performs daily pre-op chart reviews and calls, or delegates them as needed.

• Compiles monthly call schedule through collaboration with perioperative staff.

• Provides leadership to staff and/or escalates appropriately up the chain of command any safety/quality breach in the absence of the Surgery Director.

• Assists Surgery Director with projects/activities such as quality, policy review, compliance, infection prevention, chart audits.

• May attend meetings with or in absence of the Surgery Director as requested.

• Maintains a professional demeanor and leads by example in the charge nurse role.

• Respects the confidentiality of this role and may from time to time be involved with privileged information.

Education, Certifications, and Licenses Required

• Education required to obtain a valid, current, unrestricted Registered Nurse license in the State of Alaska– required

• Current full, unrestricted Registered Nursing license in Alaska or other U.S. state required.  Direct Hire must have applied for an Alaska nursing license before start date. Agency staff must have an active Alaska license.

• Commission Corp Officers meet billet description requirements for a 0 – 2 to 0 – 3

• BLS (Basic Life Support) until ACLS (Advanced Cardiac Life Support).

• PALS (Pediatric Advanced Life Support) upon hire, if not, must be obtained within 6 months of hire date - required.

• High school diploma or GED.

• Clinical Competency required within 3 months of hire and every three years

• High Risk Competency required within 3 months of hire and every year

Experience Required

• Previous supervision or lead experience preferred.

• Two years of experience as an OR circulator.

Knowledge of

• Knowledge of nursing care principles, practices, diagnosis, and processes (including assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation) to provide professional nursing care to patients.

• Knowledge of pharmaceuticals, their desired effects, side effects, and complications in their use.

Skills in

• Skills to apply scientific principles in operating and monitoring of basic and specialized medical equipment

• Skills in nursing procedures and basic nursing care.

• Oral and written communication skills, can enter and retrieve patient data accurately, can verbally communicate findings with healthcare team.

• Excellent critical thinking and organizational skills

Ability to

• Ability to recognize adverse signs and symptoms and to act promptly in emergency situations

• Ability to provide guidance, leadership, and work cooperatively with others by establishing and maintaining interpersonal relationships with patients, visitors, and other healthcare team members.

• Ability to implement appropriate nursing therapeutic interventions based on the knowledge of a wide variety of nursing diagnosis, medical and psychosocial disorders, and the normal course of disease and anticipated complications.

• Make strong sound decisions, use critical thinking skills, engage in long range planning and goal setting and ability to provide both support and a vision for the department.

Required Certifications:

Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) - American Heart Association, Basic Life Support (BLS) - American Heart Association, Clinical Competency Assessment - SEARHC, High Risk Competency - SEARHC, Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) - American Heart Association

If you like wild growth and working with happy, enthusiastic over-achievers, you'll enjoy your career with us!