RN, Preop​/PACU

Job Overview

Responsible for safe, effective, and quality patient-family centered care throughout the perioperative process in the CARTI Surgery Center. This role includes preoperative and postoperative care for all patient populations and requires proficiency in preparing patients for surgery and managing post-anesthesia recovery.

• Supports the mission, vision, and values of the organization.
• Assesses patients at intervals as stated in policies and procedures.
• Develops and implements individualized perioperative patient plans of care.
• Documents nursing care accurately, completely, and legibly in the electronic health record.
• Communicates effectively with supervisor/management, patients, visitors, physicians, and co-workers.
• Collaborates effectively with other disciplines as applicable.
• Participates in quality review and performance improvement projects.
• Maintains required competencies and pursues professional growth.
• Acts as a patient advocate and maintains privacy and confidentiality of individuals and health information.
• Provides culturally competent, ethical care within legal standards of practice.
• Uses critical thinking, problem-solving, and conflict resolution skills to foster effective work relationships with team members.

• Assesses, instructs, and prepares patients for surgery, ensuring informed consent and correct documentation.
• Performs preoperative assessments, including vital signs and patient readiness for surgical procedures.
• Initiates IVs, provides patient education about procedures, and addresses questions to ensure comfort.
• Monitors patients for condition changes, reporting any alterations to physicians as necessary.
• Administers medications according to physician orders and nursing protocols, ensuring proper dosage, route, and timing.

• Assesses monitors post-operative patient status, including cardiovascular, respiratory, neurological systems, and pain levels.
• Manages recovery from various types of anesthesia, interpreting data from monitoring devices and applying appropriate discharge criteria.
• Provides acute pain management and interventions to maintain patient stability including temperature regulation and infection prevention.
• Educates patients and designated support persons on post-operative care, including pain management, wound care, and expected outcomes.

This position may require additional hours outside the normal 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday work schedule.

• Associate’s degree or equivalent from a two-year college program, technical school, or nursing diploma.
• Graduate from an accredited school of nursing.
• Current registered nurse licensure in Arkansas.
• Basic Life Support (BLS) certification.
• Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certification.
• Certified Post Anesthesia Nurse (CPAN) or Certified Ambulatory Peri-anesthesia Nurse (CAPA) certification, preferred.

• 1-year post-anesthesia care experience, preferred; 2 years’ perioperative services experience, preferred.
• Excellent computer and other basic office equipment skills.
• Expertise in IV therapy skills.

• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, or schedule form.

• Must interact and communicate both verbally and in written form.
• Must interact and exchange information regarding patients with physicians and other departmental personnel, and outside agencies on a frequent basis while respecting the confidentiality of patient information.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear.
• The employee regularly required to stand, walk, sit, use hand to finger, handle or feel objects, tools, or controls; and reach with hands and arms.
• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus.

The work environment involves potential…