So let me tell you about the first time I ran my own room…

I was fresh off orientation, and willing to do whatever assignment I was given. The new O.R. nurse has to prove herself, right? Much to my dismay I was assigned to Dr. FratBoy (names have been changed to protect the guilty). You would think that with a frat boy-like attitude his room would be a party, right? For all of the men in the room, it definitely was. But, if you couldn’t handle a barrage of dirty jokes, foul language, and occasional harassment – on a good day – you certainly wouldn’t be able to handle it when Dr. FratBoy lost his patience and threw a 2 year-old-sized temper tantrum. Needless to say, I was really nervous when I saw that I was assigned to his room…

Our first case was just a simple knee scope.

Dr. FratBoy’s knee scopes took less than 20 minutes usually, so I knew I needed to be prepared. I got there extra early that morning, went over my notes, and made sure that I had everything set up for the case. All of my equipment was ready to go – the leg positioner, the scope tower, the shaver, the fluid pump, and my bags of fluid were spiked, with more bags in the room just in case. I even had my scrub tech look over the room to make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything. He assured me I was good to go, so I went to get my patient and rolled back to the room.

Everything was going fine until it came time to actually plug in all of the equipment. I’m still new at this and desperately trying not to make anyone angry as I frantically try to plug everything in to its appropriate place.

Camera? Check.

Light Source? Check.

Shaver? Check.

I’m doing great, right?

And then I go to connect my bags of fluids to the pump. You know, the one that also connects to the suction so you don’t create a new lake on the floor during the case? And there, in my hand I held the suction tubing, and I had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to plug it into! Where was the Neptune?! How had I forgotten something so simple as the SUCTION??

And there stands Dr. FratBoy at the foot of the bed, scope cannulas already placed in the knee, and he’s just standing there. Glaring at me. Complaining to the CRNA about the lack of suction. Getting angrier by the second. And I can feel the whole room looking at me. (Including that scrub tech who told me that the room looked great. Gee thanks, man.)

So after I got over the initial shock, I ran out of the room, got a Neptune in there as quickly as I could, and got the suction hooked up. He complained about being delayed and made a few comments about new people in his room, but he completed his knee scope, the patient did well, and we got the room turned over and ready for his next case without any further delays – or stupid mistakes – that day.

I write all of that to say, your first day on your own can be overwhelming sometimes. Especially if you get a grumpy or impatient doctor. We all know that they exist. But, don’t let one bad experience make you feel like you won’t make it in the O.R. I had a bad case with Dr. FratBoy. I definitely learned something! And I never made that mistake again, either. I also got to where I could work with him easily and I was comfortable doing his cases. It just takes time, and confidence that you know what you’re doing. Take notes, remember to use them, and don’t forget the suction. 😊