Perioperative Assistant CMC- operating room

The Perioperative Assistant in the operating room provides essential support to the surgical team and nursing staff. This role is central to maintaining the efficiency, safety, and sterility of the operating room environment while assisting with direct patient care under the supervision of licensed RN staff and surgeons.

Responsibilities

Operating Room Preparation and Maintenance

• Remove case carts from sterile storage and transport to appropriate areas
• Review surgeon preference cards and ensure all required items, equipment, and patient positioning supplies are present; report any deficiencies to the circulating nurse
• Place linen and trash bags on all case carts
• Assist nursing personnel with OR setup, including arranging supplies around the room, gathering additional equipment and supplies, and opening sterile supplies
• Monitor open sterile fields during surgical delays
• Retrieve and transport sterilized items from the autoclave or Steris to operating rooms
• Remove instrumentation, equipment, and supply items from case carts prior to transport to Sterile Processing
• Assist with end-of-case cleanup by placing dirty instrument trays, garbage, and suction canisters on case carts
• Ensure all suction canisters have solidifying agent before placing on cart
• Conduct between-case room cleaning, including cleaning and disinfecting OR tables, floors, and equipment
• Make OR beds with clean linen according to department procedures
• Use appropriate germicides for disinfecting rooms and handle all chemicals and solutions according to department policy in properly labeled containers
• Run biological testing for flash-autoclaved implants and report results to appropriate staff
• Maintain blood refrigerator inventory and ensure gauges and oxygen tank keys are available

Supply Management and Transportation

• Transport equipment and supplies between the operating room, PACU, Sterile Processing, and other hospital units as directed
• Obtain supplies, beds, and equipment from other areas of the hospital as needed
• Monitor sterile items on case carts and notify Sterile Processing of missing items
• Procure blood, laboratory, pathology reports, and radiology films for the operating room
• Deliver specimens to laboratory and pathology, both routine and stat
• Stock and obtain supplies from the inventory storeroom daily for surgery areas, local rooms, and scrub sinks
• Monitor and inform the charge RN when supplies are needed
• Ensure fluids and blankets are placed in warmers and replenished as needed
• Clean and prepare patient carts and wheelchairs between patient use following OSHA guidelines
• Document equipment cleaning on appropriate forms

Direct Patient Care

• Assist nursing personnel in transferring patients to and from OR tables, beds, wheelchairs, stretchers, or carts
• Assist with patient positioning and maintenance of patient safety
• Assist with regional anesthesia by holding patients in position for spinal or epidural blocks
• Assist nursing personnel with surgical preps by holding affected extremities
• Perform surgical clipping for surgical patients
• Identify and transport patients to and from surgery
• Respond to codes in the OR and PACU
• Assist nursing personnel with postmortem care and transport deceased patients to the morgue

Additional Responsibilities

• Operate positioning equipment under supervision
• Clean instruments when the OR and Sterile Processing instrument team is not available
• Support staff in other departments as needed
• Assist with patient repositioning within clinical areas
• Relocate equipment within the department and hospital
• Perform point-of-care testing following hospital policy guidelines
• Communicate with patients, families, and the healthcare team in a competent, courteous, and professional manner
• Maintain all work areas in a clean and orderly fashion at all times

Professional Development

• Demonstrate self-direction for continuing education and seek learning experiences as needed
• Attend departmental meetings and in-services consistently
• Set realistic goals and objectives on a yearly basis
• Participate in orientation of new staff
• Maintain compliance with mandatory hospital education and skills requirements
• Demonstrate self-direction for maintaining clinical skills through literature, in-service training, on-the-job experience, and interaction with colleagues
• Use equipment and resources responsibly

Required Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent
• 6 months to 1 year of previous patient care experience in a hospital setting
• Ability to use a computer keyboard
• Knowledge of medical terminology
• Current CPR certification
• Ability to rotate shifts to provide coverage
• Ability to lift up to 35 pounds without assistance; for patient lifts over 35 pounds or when the patient is unable to assist, patient handling equipment must be used with at least one other associate when available
• Ability to perform heavy lifting in accordance with Department of Labor definition, bending, squatting, standing for prolonged periods, and reaching overhead
• Ability to handle multiple requests for assistance and work in a fast-paced, stressful environment
• Ability to work with exposure to various contagious diseases, radiation, chemical and caustic materials, electrical equipment, and associated hazards

Physical Requirements and Working Conditions

• Ability to rotate shifts to provide coverage
• Exposure to various contagious diseases, radiation, chemical and caustic materials, electrical equipment, and hazards associated with their use
• Ability to perform heavy lifting, bending, squatting, standing for prolonged periods, and reaching overhead
• Ability to handle multiple requests for assistance and work in a fast-paced, stressful environment