Operating Room Nurse Internship

The Nurse Residency Program focuses on training licensed Registered Nurses with no prior operating room experience to work in the intra-operative environment. This program is open to nurses who are either new graduates or seasoned nurses with a non-surgical background. This internship prepares nurses with the foundational skills that are essential for providing safe patient care in the operating room.


This program is open to all Nashville area TriStar medical centers including Centennial, Summit, Southern Hills, StoneCrest, Horizon, Skyline, Hendersonville, Greenview and NorthCrest. Residents from all facilities will start the program as a cohort and attend didactic classroom days together. Clinical hours will be completed in the intern’s facility and department of hire. For example, if you are hired to work at Skyline, all your clinical hours will be completed at Skyline. An active nursing license in good standing for the state of your hiring facility (Tennessee or Kentucky) is required to begin the program.

Clinical Expectations

During the 5-month program, interns will work five 8-hour days (Monday – Friday). Alternative shifts will be at the discretion of the hiring manager after completion of the program. Clinical start times may vary depending on the schedule of your preceptor. For example, if your preceptor starts their shift at 0630, you will be expected to start at 0630.

This program helps you develop the foundational skills of the perioperative RN. You will still be a novice when you graduate and will continue to gain specialty experiences following completion of the program. Departmental and service line orientation will build on foundational skills learned in the internship program.

Regular rounding and progress meetings will be set with the course instructors, preceptors, and managers to track the resident’s progress.

Time and Attendance

Attendance and punctuality are required during the didactic portions of the program. Exceptions for clinical will be made on a case-by-case basis. Missing a day of lecture/simulation is not permitted. For clinical days, please refer to your facility’s attendance policy.

Completion Criteria

Nurse Residents must demonstrate successful completion of the following criteria in order to graduate from the internship:

• Completion of all course assignments and objective assessments

• Final grade of 75% or greater

• Professionalism Requirement

· Attend at least one Middle Tennessee Chapter AORN meeting

Residents that do not meet the above criteria must meet with surgery management, preceptor, and education team to develop an individualized action plan, which may include remediation, reassignment, or resignation from the program.

Job Summary and Qualifications 

Position Details: 

• Self/preferential scheduling posted four weeks in advance for you to have predictability in your schedule 
• Culture of mutual respect and collaboration among all surgical staff 
• Continuous investment in equipment including surgical instruments, devices and patient positioning for you to do your best work with patient safety and workflow efficiency in the Operating Room 
• Rounding with unit leaders, including charge nurses, to ensure your voice is heard on suggestions for patient care and surgical workflow improvement 
• On-call is required during select non-business hours 

What you will do in this role: 

• Evaluate patients prior to surgery 
• Provide patient and family education surrounding the procedure and peri-operative process
• Assume responsibility for patient preparation, including intravenous therapy, preoperative medications, and surgical site verification 
• Participate in surgical site verification, including briefing, time out, debriefing, and universal protocols, according to hospital policy 
• Recognize and respond to patient emergencies 
• Deliver high-quality, patient-centered care while managing evidence-based practices and continuous improvement initiatives 
• Be an integral member of a dynamic interdisciplinary team – consisting of the provider(s), surgeons, surgical technologists and more 
• Consistently apply the nursing process, critical thinking skills, scientific judgment, technical skills and leadership to independently deliver safe nursing care to patients
• Assess patient condition, monitor throughout your shift, and document changes in patient condition along with the care provided thoroughly 
• Educate patients and families/caregivers about the patient’s medical condition, treatment and follow-up measures 

What qualifications you will need: 

• (RN) Registered Nurse
• Associate Degree
• Basic Cardiac Life Support, or BCLS Instructor, or CPR must be obtained within 30 days of employment start date

Benefits

TriStar Summit Medical Center, offers a total rewards package that supports the health, life, career and retirement of our colleagues. The available plans and programs include:

• Comprehensive benefits for medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, behavioral health and telemedicine services 
• Wellbeing support, including  free counseling and referral services 
• Time away from work programs for paid time off, paid family leave, long- and short-term disability coverage and leaves of absence 
• Savings and retirement resources , including a 401(k) Plan with a 100% match on 3% to 9% of pay (based on years of service), Employee Stock Purchase Plan, flexible spending accounts, preferred banking partnerships, retirement readiness tools, rollover support and financial wellbeing counseling 
• Education support through tuition assistance, student loan assistance, certification support, dependent scholarships and a partnership with Galen College of Nursing 
• Additional benefits for fertility and family building, adoption assistance, life insurance, supplemental health protection plans, auto and home insurance, legal counseling, identity theft protection and consumer discounts 

Note: Eligibility for benefits may vary by location. 

TriStar Summit is a 230+ bed comprehensive facility. We serve Davidson, Wilson and surrounding counties. We include a Level III Trauma Center. We offer a full array of acute care services. These include cardiology, oncology, orthopaedics/spine, rehabilitation and women’s services. We are an Accredited Chest Pain Center with PCI. We are a Primary Stroke Center. TriStar Summit is a leading provider of emergency heart and stroke care.

"The great hospitals will always put the patient and the patient's family first, and the really great institutions will provide care with warmth, compassion, and dignity for the individual."- Dr. Thomas Frist, Sr. HCA Healthcare Co-Founder 

Join a family that cares about every stage in your career! We are interviewing candidates for our Operating Room Nurse Internship opening. Apply today and a member of our Talent Acquisition team will reach out. 

We are an equal opportunity employer.  We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.