Senior Surgical Nurse Assistant

Description and Responsibilities

In addition to their duties as clinical nurses, surgical nursing assistants work in three areas:

• pre-operative care
• intraoperative care
• post-operative care.

They work in collaboration with the surgeon and perform complementary clinical and technical surgical procedures during surgical interventions.

Education and Training Requirements

The senior surgical nurse assistant must have completed:

• a bachelor's degree in nursing;
• a certificate in perioperative nursing demonstrating his/her ability to perform these duties;
• a minimum of 24 months' experience in an operating room within the last five years;
• a biennial attestation in advanced cardiovascular life support, issued by an instructor recognized by the Fondation des maladies du cœur du Québec.

This program is offered at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) : 4710 - Certificat de pratique infirmière de première assistance en chirurgie (uquebec.ca) .

Required Interests, Skills and Personality Type

• Must be a good communicator and listener
• Must be responsible and organized
• Must enjoy working in a team with colleagues and other professionals
• Must have excellent initiative and be able to work autonomously
• Must have good summarizing and analytical skills
• Must know how to observe and analyze situations and people
• Must love contact with the public
• Must manage stress well

Personality Type (RIASEC)

SIA

• S - Prefers to be in contact with people and to help them
• I - Prefers studying, understanding and solving problems
• A - Prefers completing creative tasks

Work Environment

The surgical nurse first assistant works mainly in hospitals.

Useful Links

• Première assistance en chirurgie | OIIQ  (in French only)