So you think you want to work in theatres?
Do you enjoy challenge and being part of a busy team?
Operating theatre work is not for the faint-hearted but can be enormously rewarding.
What does it involve?
It depends on which area you work in. You may be in scrub, anaesthetics or recovery, and there are many different surgical specialities.
Who works in theatres?
Apart from surgeons and anaesthetists there are also Nurses, Operating Department Practitioners (ODP’s), Health Care Assistants (HCA’s), Porters and admin staff.
How do I get a job in theatres?
If you want to work as a surgeon or anaesthetist, take yourself off to medical school. Here are some careers stories from The Royal College of Surgeons.
Trained nurses can work in scrub or recovery after gaining some extra post-qualifying experience.
Operating Department Practitioners are qualified to work in scrub, anaesthetics and recovery and also work outside theatres in Accident & Emergency and as part of the cardiac arrest team. Follow this link to see a list of universities offering the two-year approved Dip HE in Operating Department Practice.
If you’d like a job as a Health Care Assistant in theatres contact your local hospital to see what’s available. Many HCA’s progress up the career ladder by training as nurses or ODP’s.
I’ve never heard of an ODP, what’s one of those?
For an idea of what an ODP is and what they do click here.
You could also have a look at this video.
