In the O.R., the shifts leading up to a major holiday are equivalent to working night shift during a full moon – every shift, every day. The days are crazy and the nights are long. Add to that the mad December rush to get all surgeries in before the end of the year and suddenly, everything comes together to bring a whole new meaning to the word busy.
So, with Christmas upon us, I thought it would be fun to share this poem I wrote about Christmas Eve in the O.R. If you’ve ever worked a shift during the holidays, I’m sure you can relate to some of it. Think of this as an O.R. version of ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.
I hope you all have a blessed Christmas season!
Christmas Eve in the O.R.
It’s Christmas Eve in the OR
and look down the halls,
The staff’s getting restless –
which doctor’s on call?
We’re off to our rooms
to get set up for cases,
We wipe down our tables
and load up our spaces.
Vancomycin, Marcaine,
and Saline for starters,
We stock up on gloves
and supplies like we’re hoarders.
We’ve got every suture
the doc might ever use,
And I think, if you steal one,
we might blow a fuse.
We’ve got our assignments;
our shift will go well.
Yet we whisper a prayer
the day won’t go to hell.
But, like the constant return
of the waves to the shore,
Are the surgeons who want
to keep adding “one more.”
So many cases
they keep adding with glee!
Did you really think
you’d get off work by 3?
The OR Charge Nurses
are running amuck,
And the scheduler’s desk
looks like lightning just struck.
The add-ons continue,
the hours tick by,
Our assignments keep coming;
we grab supplies on the fly.
We’ve recovered 2 bullets
and stopped all the bleeding,
That trauma in 1 will
see their family this evening.
The kid down in 7
got fixed up real fast,
And he’s even getting
a fun, festive cast!
There’s a mother of two
down in OR 14,
When her heartbeat returned
the whole room made a scene –
Soon she’ll wake to see
her kids’ smiling faces,
Grateful this Christmas for
all God’s good graces;
But it doesn’t look good
down in OR 11,
I’m guessing that soul will
spend Christmas in Heaven.
We’ve worked all day long
and into the night,
Our shifts came and went –
and then went out of sight.
The lunch that was scarfed
at 11 this morning,
Has long disappeared
and our stomachs are roaring.
There’s an ache in our backs
and our feet are so sore,
But we’ll jump to get ready
when they add on once more.
The dawn is approaching,
Christmas Day has arrived!
And we’re thankful today
for that shift we survived.
We’ll head off to our homes,
our families, and pets,
And we’ll celebrate today,
but please, never forget –
We’re nurses and scrubs
with such great ambition,
The OR is our passion,
saving patients our mission.
We’ll work all night long
if there are patients to save,
And we’ll give it our best –
every case, every day.
Written By Melanie Perry
