Special experience: or

Running head: SPECIAL EXPERIENCE: OPERATING ROOM Running head: SPECIAL EXPERIENCE: OPERATING ROOM On Wednesday, January 27, 2010, the patient (P.O.) entered Mercy Medical Center’s emergency room, complaining of pain in her abdominal region. Upon examination, it was discovered that P.O. was experiencing pain from gallstones, cholelithiasis. Surgery was required and scheduled for Friday, February 5, 2010. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the official surgery name, where the gallbladder (and gallstones) is removed.
Pre-op Area (Ambulatory/Same Day Surgery)
The patient took a Prevacid 15 mg tablet by mouth the morning of the surgery, and a Lopressor 25 mg tablet by mouth the night before and the morning of the procedure. Prevacid is used to reduce acid reflux and was effective. Lopressor reduces high-blood pressure. The patient arrived at 0600 hours for her scheduled surgery at 0730 hours. The head nurse took the patient’s vitals, checked to make sure she was the correct patient scheduled for that specific surgery, and ran lab work. The patient was informed how to care for herself after surgery, including no heavy lifting, no driving, and given food parameters, for the next few days. The nurse made sure the patient was not allergic to latex or any medications, placed SCD’s on the patient’s legs, and administered an IV. The patient was given IV #18 LA FA c NS at 80cc/hr, and the IV site was clean, dry, and intact, labeled with the nurse’s initials and date. The primary nursing diagnosis applicable to my patient is ineffective peripheral tissue perfusion related to pressure of enlarged abdomen on pelvic and peripheral circulation, and the secondary nursing diagnosis is acute pain related to surgical prepare of the gallbladder.
I enjoyed my time in the operating room. It was a valuable learning experience, because it allowed me to exercise some of my newly acquired knowledge, yet it taught me more than I could get out of a book. Some life experiences just cannot be substituted by a book. I enjoyed Running head: SPECIAL EXPERIENCE: OPERATING ROOM interacting with the patient and nursing staff, which further reinforced to me the need for open Operating Room
The patient’s scheduled laparoscopic surgery went as planned. The surgical team was comprised of the certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA), the pre-op nurse, the surgical nurse, the circulating nurse, and the surgeon. General anesthesia was administered to P.O. by the CRNA, which checked the patient’s blood pressure, maintained oxygen status, inserted the endotracheal tube into the patient’s trachea, and confirmed with the anesthesiologist the The pre-op nurse showed me how to put on my face mask and informed me not to touch anything blue because it is sterilized. She sat on a chair watching the surgery and monitored the patient’s vitals with a computer. The surgical nurse cleaned the patient’s face, placed the electrodes on her to monitor her vitals, and placed ChloraPrep on the patient’s abdomen to maintain a sterile field and let air-dry. The circulating nurse is the patient’s advocate; she prepped the equipment, facilitated a sterile environment, and kept me informed on what was The surgeon was the last one in and the first one to leave after the procedure was done. The surgeon is the one who actually performs the surgery, but he depends on the surgical staff. The surgeon was scheduled to perform this procedure on another patient that day. The Laparoscopic cholecystectomy took about an hour from start to finish and was successful. The realism of the operating room hit me as the surgeons and nurses scrubbed in, and I was surprised at how relaxed I felt, considering that was my first time to experience being a nurse. I owe much of that relaxation I felt in the operating room to the staff. They were all very Running head: SPECIAL EXPERIENCE: OPERATING ROOM genuine and helpful. The surgical nurse informed me that the CRNA does all of the work, and the anesthesiologist just agreed that the endotracheal tube was placed correctly. When she told me that, I almost giggled under my face mask. The operating room environment was very lively. The surgeon joked with the CRNA about going on his Facebook and going to Columbus to golf before the snowstorm comes. I told my friends that it was like Grey’s Anatomy in there.
Recovery Room
The patient was awakened in the operating room after the procedure. She was still out of it, and she did not come out of it until she was in the recovery room. She was hooked up to equipment to monitor her vitals, and the nurse checked the patient’s airway with her stethoscope and placed a mask with oxygen on the patient for at least 30 minutes to monitor her oxygen When the patient was fully alert, the nurse assessed the patient’s pain level. P.O. responded that her pain was at 10 by forcefully gesturing with her hands and fingers. The nurse administered 25 mcg of Fentanyl for pain through the patient’s IV, as well as 4 mg of Zofran for nausea. The recovery nurse monitored the patient’s pain level every 10 minutes and recorded her vitals every 15 minutes for the next hour. The recovery nurse administered more Fentanyl for the next hour and hung an additional IV during recovery to maintain fluid balance. Mercy Medical Center uses the Aldrete scale to discharge patients. The recovery nurse assessed the patient’s level of consciousness, temperature, pulse, respiration rate, blood pressure, pain, and nausea. The patient cannot be discharged until she is able to drink liquids, maintain her Running head: SPECIAL EXPERIENCE: OPERATING ROOM My experience in the operating room has helped solidify my career choice as a nurse. I was very calm and collected during the surgery. I felt very much at ease during the procedure and enjoyed the experience thoroughly. I now have an interest in being a recovery nurse.

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