Registered Nurse Circulator

Definition of Position:

The Registered Nurse specializing in perioperative nursing practice during the intraoperative surgical experience. Responsible for the delivery of safe, effective, and quality patient and family-centered care in the operating room and other areas of perioperative services for all patient populations. The perioperative nurse acts as the patient advocate and is responsible for the direction and supervision of any personnel assigned to them. This role includes regular on-call duties for the Surgery Unit.

Essential Job Functions:

• Accept responsibility for the direction, control, and planning of activities.
• Make evaluations and decisions based on measurable or verifiable criteria.
• Work independently.
• Implement the plan of care by:
  • Protecting the patient from injury caused by extraneous objects and chemical, electrical, laser, mechanical, and thermal sources.
  • Performing accounting procedures to prevent unintended retained surgical items.
  • Ensuring that the patient’s procedure is performed on the correct site, side, and level.
  • Managing the patient’s specimens according to organizational policy and procedures.
  • Communicating the patient’s status to relevant parties throughout the continuum of care.
  • Administering medications safely and correctly.
  • Maintaining the patient’s wound and tissue perfusion at or above baseline levels.
  • Ensuring the status of the patient’s systems and balances are maintained at or above baseline levels.
  • Protecting the patient from surgical site infection.
  • Upholding the patient’s rights, dignity, and privacy.
  • Providing age-specific, culturally competent, ethical care within legal standards of practice.
  • Delivering consistent and comparable care regardless of the setting.
• Document nursing care accurately, completely, and legibly.
• Collaborate effectively with other disciplines as applicable.
• Utilize problem-solving and conflict resolution skills to foster effective work relationships with team members.
• Maintain required competencies.
• Pursue professional growth and participate in a professional organization.
• Act as a patient advocate and maintain privacy and confidentiality of individuals and health information.
• Support the organization’s mission, vision, values, policies, and procedures.
• Participate in required education for relevant programs as applicable to position.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

Education:

• Required: Associate of Science in Nursing.
• Preferred: Bachelor’s degree in nursing.

Licenses/certifications/registrations:

• Required: Current RN license in the state, BLS, ACLS, & PALS Certification, TNCC.
• Preferred: CNOR, Peri-op 101, CRASE training (required if travel assignment extends beyond a 6-month period).

Experience:

• Required: None.
• Preferred: Previous RN circulator experience, Peri-op 101 course, and scrub experience.

Other Requirements:

• Perform various duties, often changing from one task to another of a different nature without loss of efficiency or composure.
• Recognize the rights and responsibilities of patient confidentiality.
• Convey empathy and compassion to those experiencing pain, grief, or trauma.
• Relate to others in a manner that creates a sense of teamwork and cooperation.
• Communicate effectively and therapeutically with individuals from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds.
• Incorporate service excellence in customer relations in daily activities.

Shift Information:

Day shift: 5×8

Holiday coverage required.

Minimum Years of Experience: 3