Thank you so very much for taking time out of your day to help this platform and the Operating Room Nurses / First Assists who read it understand the perspective from a surgeon’s Point of View so they can improve their skills and become more agile in their surgical skills.

*All information provided is anonymous and there will be no attribution to encourage our surgeon colleagues to be honest in their needs from their teams.

Surgical Specialty (or generalist)

Advanced Practice or BSN? Scrub or Circulating? Did you prefer one versus the other and why?

Type of Institution / Years as O.R. Nurse

Inspiration for O.R. Nursing?

How did you get into O.R. Nursing and what was your inspiration behind your journey in surgery? Did you have a formal perioperative rotation in your nursing program?

Favorite Cases

Was there a specific type of case that you really enjoyed? What was unique about about the cases that made them your favorite?

Case or Cases You Will Never Forget...

Without violating HIPAA, were there any specific cases that you'll never forget - what made them memorable and did they have lasting influence on you as a nurse / person?

Your 'Uniform'

Do you always wear the same PPE and 'gear' - most surgeons tend to be very 'ritualistic' - anything unique about your gear worth noting? What goes through your mind as you are scrubbing-in and getting gloved-and-gowned?

Setting the Tone

How do you set the tone for your O.R? What type of tone / vibe do you want in the room once the case starts?

Underperforming Team Members

How do you deal with underperforming team members, especially those that are directly assisting you? Will you let them know during the case - is it verbal or will they just know based on non-verbal communication?

Adverse Events

How do you stay poised when a patient is not doing well on the table? Anything special you do and will you get more tense with the team - will you raise your voice or snap at people?

Team 'Pet Peeves'

What are some 'pet peeves' that you have in the O.R. with your team members that drives you crazy (i.e., side chatter, etc.)? How do you address it?

Intraoperative Resuscitation (If Applicable)

Hopefully very rare, but do you ever have patients code on the table? How do you handle yourself and your team during such stress?

Any Other Info?

Are there any other things you'd like to share about how you run your surgical team or perspectives on how a well-run surgical team is managed to help Operating Room Nurses and other support team members?

Thank you so very much for taking time out of your day to help this platform and the Operating Room Nurses / First Assists who read it understand the perspective from a surgeon’s Point of View so they can improve their skills and become more agile in their surgical skills.

*All information provided is anonymous and there will be no attribution to encourage our surgeon colleagues to be honest in their needs from their teams.

Disclosure: The Open Aortic Surgical Foundation Fund (OASFF) is a 501(c)(4) incorporated in the State of California. As a private foundation, we abide by the rules and regulations enforced by both state and federal regulatory authorities.