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Maj. Deborah Hartman (right), staff nurse operating room, 59th Surgical Operations Squadron, and 1st Lt. Elmer Lacsamana, nurse fellow, 59th Training Squadron, demonstrate a surgical procedure at the operating room nursing course display Nov. 9 in the Wilford Hall Medical Center atrium, Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. Nov. 8-14 marks Perioperative Nurse Week, a nationally recognized event which celebrates the impact operating room nurses have within the nursing profession. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Nicole Roberts)
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Perioperative nurses perform various roles
Posted 11/9/2009 Updated 11/9/2009
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by Maj. Rhonda Richter
59th Training Squadron
11/9/2009 - LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Nov. 8-14 marks Perioperative Nurse Week, a nationally recognized event which celebrates the impact operating room nurses have within the nursing profession.
"Perioperative" is a more descriptive and accurate term compared to "operating room" because the term focuses on all facets of the patient's surgical experience: the preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative phases of nursing care.
The Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses, or AORN, instituted Perioperative Nurse Week in 1979. Since then, hospitals, clinics and other healthcare agencies have participated in the event by teaching the public about the various roles performed by perioperative nurses.
The theme for this year's celebration is "Reaching the Peak of Perioperative Practice: Safety, Quality, Collaboration."
Perioperative nursing, the nursing profession's first specialty, recognizes the surgical patient as a unique individual and honors the sacred relationship established between the nurse and his or her patient. Working in collaboration with surgeons, anesthesia providers, surgical technicians and other allied health personnel, perioperative nurses are accountable to their patients. This accountability is demonstrated through the use of best practices, clinical guidelines, and performance improvement initiatives.
These highly-specialized registered nurses ensure their patients receive professional, evidence-based nursing care in a safe environment.
Keeping patients safe in the environment of care has always been at the forefront of perioperative nursing and is the hallmark of the nursing profession as a whole. This theme was most notably recognized by Florence Nightingale during the Crimean War (1853 -1856) at Barracks Hospital in Scutari, near what is now Istanbul, Turkey.
Known as the "Lady with the Lamp," Nightingale made solitary night rounds cleaning soldiers' wounds and transformed the lurid conditions into an environment of healing. During just six months, the soldier death rate dropped from 42 percent to 2 percent, a result of dramatically improved sanitation and good nursing care, directly related to Nightingale's innovative leadership.
Advocating a safe patient environment revolves around numerous entities; but, most importantly, begins with mentoring novice OR nurses with a back-to-basics approach to patient care and by promoting standards of care which are linked to evidence-based research.
Such mentoring begins for many Air Force perioperative nurses when they attend the U.S. Air Force Operating Room Nurse Course. Air Force nurse corps officers are selected to attend the course, which is held three times each year. Throughout the course, emphasis is placed on the development of the OR nursing role and the ability to function safely and effectively as a surgical team member during surgical procedures.
Under the guidance of experienced preceptors and the course supervisor, perioperative nurse residents get a multitude of experiences at both Wilford Hall Medical Center here and Brooke Army Medical Center at Ft. Sam Houston, Texas.
Perioperative nurses constantly strengthen their professional skills through continuing education and by being active participants in their local AORN chapter.
After two years and 2,400 hours of clinical experience in the OR, perioperative nurses can apply to take the certification exam (CNOR). This certification represents a higher level of professional achievement, demonstrates knowledge of clinical competence and practice standards, and demonstrates proficiency in support of quality patient care. It recognizes the standard of commitment and excellence devoted towards the profession of perioperative nursing.
The Air Force Personnel Center's official "Call for Candidates" letter for all nurse corps educational opportunities, including the ORN course, is located on the Air Force Medical Service Knowledge Exchange at:
https://kx.afms.mil/kxweb/dotmil/kj.do?functionalArea=AFNurseEducation.
For more information on perioperative nursing or the U.S. Air Force Operating Room Nursing Course, email Maj. Rhonda L. Richter at rhonda.richter@lackland.af.mil.
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