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Scrub nurse skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
Quoted experts
Dr. Monika Feeney,
Karen Gorton PhD, RN, FNP, MS
Below we've compiled a list of the most critical scrub nurse skills. We ranked the top skills for scrub nurses based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 23.4% of scrub nurse resumes contained patients as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a scrub nurse needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 scrub nurse skills for your resume and career

1. Patients

Here's how scrub nurses use patients:
  • Provided teaching to patients and families regarding health care preparation in ambulatory/outpatient care.
  • Administered medication, assessed patients per policy and provided total patient care.

2. Surgery Site

Here's how scrub nurses use surgery site:
  • Verify patient and surgery site with pre operative nursing staff and anesthesia.

3. Direct Patient Care

Here's how scrub nurses use direct patient care:
  • Provide direct patient care including evaluations, monitoring, assessing, implementing, and documenting any physical/psychological changes in the patient.
  • Registered nurse on Oncology/Pulmonary Unit accountable for direct patient care and monitoring of care provided by other professional and ancillary personnel.

4. Surgical Procedures

Surgical procedures include the list of tasks that are done while doing surgery. Usually, a surgical procedure involves an incision with instruments, performed to repair damage or heal the disease in a living body. Surgical procedures are performed by trained individuals such as surgeons, doctors, and nurses.

Here's how scrub nurses use surgical procedures:
  • Monitored the status of surgical procedures and interfaced with physician to perform emergency actions.
  • Assisted doctors with sterile surgical procedures and non-invasive procedures.

5. GYN

GYN is a commonly used abbreviation that stands for gynecology or a gynecologist. The word "gynecology" has emerged from the Greek word "gynaikos" which means women and "logy means "study" making it a study of women. A doctor who specialized in handling pregnancy, childbirth, and treating female reproductive system diseases is called a gynecologist. They diagnose and treat issues of the uterus, ovaries, fallopian tubes, and breasts.

Here's how scrub nurses use gyn:
  • Assisted general operating room procedures, including otolaryngology, plastics,orthopedics, urology, OB GYN, cases.
  • Circulated for Plastic, General, Vascular, GYN, Urology, Neuro, and Thorastic cases.

6. Ortho

Ortho is a medical prefix that refers to straightening something. This is seen in medical professions such as an orthodontist, who straightens teeth, or an orthopedic physician or surgeon, who assists in straightening a skeletal structure to prevent future deformities or harmful issues to develop.

Here's how scrub nurses use ortho:
  • Worked in all areas of OR accept for Open Heart and Eyes I did trauma cases, ortho cases.
  • General, Ortho, Podiatry, Plastics.

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7. Urology

Here's how scrub nurses use urology:
  • Circulated general surgery and urology cases.
  • Specialized in the orthopedic and urology areas.

8. IV

Here's how scrub nurses use iv:
  • Replace anesthesia materials used, IV fluids, pulse ox, filters, and oxygen, nitrogen and air tanks.
  • Started IV's, Passed medication, Blood Draws, and fallowed the direction of our medical care providers.

9. Vital Signs

Vital signs are a set of values indicating different body systems' performance. They are measurements of the body's most basic functions. The four major vital signs used in medicine to assess a patient are body temperature, pulse rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure.

Here's how scrub nurses use vital signs:
  • Monitor vital signs as well as retrieving any supplies or instruments the surgeon or scrub tech might need.
  • Monitored vital sign, such as blood pressure, pulse and respiration.

10. Sterile Technique

Here's how scrub nurses use sterile technique:
  • Maintain flow of the procedure, observing for breaks in sterile technique.
  • Monitored for any breaks in sterile technique during surgery.

11. PACU

Here's how scrub nurses use pacu:
  • Remained flexible to float into the PACU, same day surgery, prep room, and GI as needed.
  • Communicated patient status to other units including PACU, ICU, and blood bank.

12. General Surgery

Here's how scrub nurses use general surgery:
  • Assist surgeons in all types of general surgery as well as specialties.
  • General Surgery - scrub and circulate, laparoscopic, level one trauma, and Pediatric/Neonatal.

13. Catheter

Here's how scrub nurses use catheter:
  • Performed discharge patient teaching on cardiovascular care post cardiac catheter, open heart, and pacemaker/automatic internal defibrillator.
  • Initiated intravenously therapy, administered medications, provided care for post-operative open-heart patients and post cardiac catheter patients.

14. Sponges

Here's how scrub nurses use sponges:
  • Document needle, blades, sponges and instruments before, during and after surgery.
  • Account for all sharps, sponges, and instruments during an operative procedure.

15. Patient Education

Here's how scrub nurses use patient education:
  • Provided patient education from admission to discharge related to diagnosis, surgery, anesthesia, medication, activity and pain management.
  • Performed age appropriate Nursing care including assessment, documentation, medication administration, intravenous therapy, and patient education.
top-skills

What skills help Scrub Nurses find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on scrub nurse resumes?

Dr. Monika Feeney

Department Head for the School of Anesthesia and School of Nursing, Missouri State University

Firstly to be a nurse, you have to pass multiple skills and technical duties to even be allowed to practice - one is not more important than another since all are patient care skills, and our graduates are taught to be safe providers. In addition, you have to pass a challenging board examination, the NCLEX. You need to be well-rounded and have technical skills as well as the mental capacity to assess and make safe decisions. Resilience and the ability to function safely in an ever-changing healthcare system are important. A kind and caring attitude with a hardworking spirit are what makes a great nurse. The ability to empathize and think on your feet is always important - not just during the current COVID situation. Hands that give kind care as well as a heart that cares.

Advanced practice skills/certifications generally increase your income potential.

What scrub nurse skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Karen Gorton PhD, RN, FNP, MSKaren Gorton PhD, RN, FNP, MS LinkedIn profile

Associate Dean, Associate Professor, University of Wyoming

In nursing, the ability to think critically within the clinical context, communication, and assessment skills will continue to be very important. You, as the nurse, are with the patient for more hours than any other provider. Your ability to look at the patient combined with your assessment, their current issues, their lab values, and clinical presentation will be the difference in their outcome. Once you put your pieces together, your ability to clearly communicate your findings with the providers will advocate for the patient and their care.
Do you want to know more?
Read more about what experts have to say about scrub nurse

List of scrub nurse skills to add to your resume

Scrub nurse skills

The most important skills for a scrub nurse resume and required skills for a scrub nurse to have include:

  • Patients
  • Surgery Site
  • Direct Patient Care
  • Surgical Procedures
  • GYN
  • Ortho
  • Urology
  • IV
  • Vital Signs
  • Sterile Technique
  • PACU
  • General Surgery
  • Catheter
  • Sponges
  • Patient Education
  • Patient Safety
  • Surgical Instruments
  • Plastic Surgery
  • Surgical Specialties
  • Recovery Room
  • Open Heart
  • Surgical Cases
  • Post-Operative Care
  • Diagnostic Tests
  • Office Procedures
  • Post-Op Care
  • Surgical Equipment
  • Medication Administration
  • Endoscopy
  • Pediatrics
  • EKG
  • Hospital Policy
  • Intubation
  • IM
  • ICU
  • ICD
  • GI Lab
  • Room Procedures
  • Surgical Suite
  • Surgical Site
  • AORN
  • Medical History
  • Family Education
  • Suturing

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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