STAFF RN - Birthing Center

The Registered Nurse is responsible for assessing the health status of individuals and groups, establishing nursing diagnosis, establishing goals to meet identified health care needs, planning a strategy of medical or health care, prescribing nursing interventions to fulfill the strategy of care, implementing the strategy of care and evaluating documented responses to interventions.

The Registered Nurse is responsible for assessing the health status of individuals preparing to undergo surgery, identifying and intervening on risk factors according to anesthesia protocols and providing essential pre-op education so as to assure patient understanding and limit day of surgery cancelations. The RN must use critical thinking and nursing judgement to assess risk and to see that all requirements of the anesthesia protocol are met and assure that abnormal test findings are communicated to anesthesia or the surgeon as needed.

The RN works in collaboration with the surgeons’ office, the OR and Anesthesia to assure that the patients vital and required information is recorded and available for Anesthesia and the Surgeon to review and reconcile on the day of surgery.

The Registered Nurse also delegates those interventions which may be performed by others, supervises others as appropriate, assists in maintaining a safe environment for the rendering of effective nursing care, provides education to patients, families and health professionals and collaborates with other health professionals in the planning and management of health care.

Perioperative Services consists of the Preoperative Assessment Clinic (PAC), Operating Room (OR), Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU), Ambulatory Care Unit (ACU), Endoscopy, Minor Procedures and Sterile Processing Dept. Patients are cared for from 10 months until the end of life. General surgery, limited vascular, thoracic, head and neck/ENT, OB/GYN, orthopedic, urology, dental, ophthalmology, podiatry and plastic surgery are performed in the three rooms.

Holmium laser, Greenlight laser, and ESWL are provided through outside contract services. Cesarean sections are performed in the Birthing Center operating room.

Perioperative Services is staffed by Registered Nurses, Surgical Tech/LPN, Surgical Tech-Endoscopy, Surgical Techs, an Anesthesia Tech, Materials Specialist, Scheduler/Staffing Coordinator, Sterile Processing Techs, a Unit Secretary/LNA, Operating Room Assistant, Infomatics Nurse and a Director of Perioperative Services.

The OR provides care 24 hrs a day, each day of the year for patients aged ten months until the end of life. The OR’s elective schedule is from 7:00am to 3:30pm. Care is coordinated between physician offices, the OR, Anesthesiology, the Preoperative Screening RN, and the Team Leader for PACU / ACU and the OR / SPD. Predictable starting times for surgery and admitting times for patients are established by the Director or designee.

The PACU has an area for the immediate preoperative care and reassessment of patients for surgery, for the admission and discharge of select ACU patients, and primarily, for the provision of intensive observation and care of patients following operative and special procedures.

Sterile Processing processes and decontaminates instruments and equipment for the OR and Nursing Units house-wide.

The ACU includes Endoscopy and the Minor Procedure Room, caring for surgical /medical patients, and…