Registered Nurse - PACU - PRN

Forrest City Medical Center•Forrest City, AR

About The Position

The PACU Registered Nurse provides safe, high-quality nursing care to patients recovering from anesthesia after surgical, diagnostic, or therapeutic procedures. The role requires advanced assessment skills, critical thinking, and the ability to respond rapidly to changes in patient condition while ensuring comfort, safety, and continuity of care. As appropriate, the nurse may also help staff the operating room when cross-training competencies are present.

Responsibilities

Monitor patients during immediate post-anesthesia recovery, including airway patency, vital signs, neurological status, pain level, and surgical site.
Assess and manage post-operative complications such as respiratory distress, bleeding, nausea or vomiting, and hemodynamic instability.
Administer medications, IV fluids, blood products, and pain-management therapies according to provider orders and facility protocols.
Maintain airway support, including oxygen therapy and oral or nasal airways, and assist with advanced airway interventions as needed.
Use cardiac monitoring, pulse oximetry, capnography, and other monitoring equipment appropriately.
Perform admission, ongoing, and discharge assessments in accordance with PACU standards.
Educate patients and families about post-operative care, pain management, and discharge instructions.
Communicate patient status and concerns to anesthesia providers, surgeons, and interdisciplinary care teams.
Document patient assessments, interventions, responses, and outcomes accurately.
Comply with infection-control, patient-safety, and regulatory standards.
Participate in quality-improvement initiatives, unit-based education, and competency validation.
Assist with patient transport and handoff to inpatient units or discharged-care settings using standardized handoff tools.
Help staff the operating room when appropriate and when cross-training competencies are present.