Brandy Pierce

My job working in the presurgical evaluation center/preadmit testing department includes any and all responsibilities that go with getting preoperative patients ready for surgery. I also worked at this same facility in the same day surgery department prior to transferring to the preoperative department. My duties included but were not limited to the following:

• providing showering instructions to prevent surgical infections
• providing basic instructions on such things as npo status and check in instructions
• verifying patient information is correct including name and date of birth
• identifying patient allergies
• identifying patients that are high risk or who have sleep apnea
• obtaining approximate height and weight on patients
• obtaining patient personal medical history as well as family medical history and patient medications
• providing patients with instructions on what medications to take day of surgery and what medications to stop for surgery
• helping to determine what if any testing is needed for surgery in coordination with surgeons and anesthesia
• scheduling patients for covid testing as well as labs, chest xray and ekgs
• getting charts ready for surgery including obtaining orders, history and physicals and consents for procedures and surgeries
• completing interviews on observations patients including cardiology patients and providing them with general instructions
• communicating any concerns with anesthesia and surgeons
• adding any pertinent information on patients to surgery schedule
• getting patients ready for surgery and receiving them back to same day surgery after surgery

My job working on a perioperative unit on an as needed basis included taking care of procedural and surgery patients. I had many responsibilities including but not limited to:

• obtaining information from patients preoperatively for surgery
• getting patients ready for surgery
• limited care for patients in the postanesthesia care unit
• caring for patients after surgery and discharging them
• providing education to patients and families on medications, procedures, medical conditions, anesthesia and postoperative care

My job working on a surgical floor included any responsibilities required to get patients ready for surgery as well as caring for them after surgery including:

• monitoring for and attempting to prevent surgical complications including those resulting from anesthesia
• educating patients and their support networks on the pre and postoperative process including how to care for patients after surgery and discharge and on disease processes
• performing dressing changes

My job working in the postanesthesia care unit had many responsibilities. Some of these responsibilities were as follows:

• recovering patients from various anesthetic agents
• minimizing and/or treating complications associated with anesthesia and surgery
• providing immediate postoperative care
• pain management
• monitoring cardiac catheterization patients and removing sheaths
• setting up and maintaining pain pumps
• caring for critical care patients waiting on beds

• Completing preoperative nursing interviews on procedural and surgical patients including electronically charting allergies, medications and medical histories.

• Educating patients on what medications to take morning of procedures and also providing preoperative instructions.

• Communicating with anesthesia any concerns and requesting and obtaining any clearances needed prior to day of admission for outpatient procedure.

• Contacting any physician’s office to gather all paperwork necessary prior to admission date (consents, history and physicals, and orders). As well ensuring no issues with paperwork and informing them of any. Notifying offices of any electrocardiograms, labs, etc are still missing.