Scrub nurse vs operating room nurse

The differences between scrub nurses and operating room nurses can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a scrub nurse and an operating room nurse. Additionally, an operating room nurse has an average salary of $68,255, which is higher than the $66,672 average annual salary of a scrub nurse.

The top three skills for a scrub nurse include patients, surgery site and direct patient care. The most important skills for an operating room nurse are patients, BLS, and acls.

Scrub nurse vs operating room nurse overview

	Scrub Nurse	Operating Room Nurse
Yearly salary	$66,672	$68,255
Hourly rate	$32.05	$32.81
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	635,835	545,487
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	2	2

Scrub nurse vs operating room nurse salary

Scrub nurses and operating room nurses have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Scrub Nurse	Operating Room Nurse
Average salary	$66,672	$68,255
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $103,000	Between $42,000 And $108,000
Highest paying City	-	Urban Honolulu, HI
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between scrub nurse and operating room nurse education

There are a few differences between a scrub nurse and an operating room nurse in terms of educational background:

	Scrub Nurse	Operating Room Nurse
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	Duke University	Duke University

Scrub nurse vs operating room nurse demographics

Here are the differences between scrub nurses' and operating room nurses' demographics:

	Scrub Nurse	Operating Room Nurse
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 15.4% Female, 84.6%	Male, 14.8% Female, 85.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between scrub nurse and operating room nurse duties and responsibilities

Scrub nurse example responsibilities.

Organize and manage regular clinics involving external physicians, including ophthalmology, ENT, Med/Surg, orthopedics, and podiatry professionals.
Assist scrub nurse in the setup, arrangement and count of surgical equipment and sponges.
Maintain and accurately document proper counting of instruments, sponges and needles as per policy.
Include teaching at community outreach seminars and optometry seminars for patients and physicians
Provide teaching to patients and families regarding health care preparation in ambulatory/outpatient care.
Perform and participate in cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Operating room nurse example responsibilities.

Post op surgery assist recovery nurse with obtaining vitals signs and attaching EKG leads and oxygen.
Achieve departmental goals and objectives by instituting SGNA standards and processes for inpatient and outpatient care.
Organize and manage regular clinics involving external physicians, including ophthalmology, ENT, Med/Surg, orthopedics, and podiatry professionals.
General surgery, ortho, GU, GI and ENT and dentals.
Complete BLS and ACLS certification.
Specialize in GYN, urology and orthopedics.

Scrub nurse vs operating room nurse skills

Common scrub nurse skills

Patients, 23%
Surgery Site, 11%
Direct Patient Care, 6%
Surgical Procedures, 6%
GYN, 5%
Ortho, 5%

Common operating room nurse skills

Patients, 21%
BLS, 13%
Acls, 7%
Surgical Procedures, 4%
PACU, 3%
Pre-op, 3%

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Scrub Nurse
Scrub Nurse vs Operating Room Nurse

Updated January 8, 2025

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