Stress factors in operating room nurses participating in multiorgan retrieval

Abstract

Slovenian national transplant network Sloveniatransplant joined Eurotransplant in 2000 and became an equal part of European transplant network Eurotransplant. Multiorgan retrieval all across the country is performed by mobile surgical teams of the Medical Centre Ljubljana, sometimes also by a surgical team from abroad. In all cases, three operating room nurses from Slovenia participate in the surgical procedure. The purpose of this article is to discuss by means of a questionnaire established stressors experienced by operating room nurses participating in multiorgan retrieval. Research technique was represented by anonymous questionnaire. The questionnaire field in by 24 operating room nurses from the Medical Centre Ljubljana. 24 was also the total number of all operating room nurses participating in transplant activities at that time. The results of questionnaire »Stressors for operating room nurses participating in multiorgan retrieval« shows that the most prominent stressors are: the fact of being on call as a member of the mobile surgical team for multiorgan retrieval itself, untimely and insufficiently information on the transplant coordinator, condition before the surgical procedure itself, driving by ambulance car to a donor hospital, preparation, transportation and caring for equipment and other resources needed for multiorgan retrieval in donor hospital, the moment when donor is disconnected from anaesthetic apparatuses (cross clamp of the donor’s aorta) and post mortem care of the donor.