Surgical Services

Our state-of-the-art Endoscopy unit has 16 beds and 8 procedures rooms. We are located in a new facility filled with windows and beautiful views.

We care for a wide range of pediatric and adult inpatients and outpatients. We do screenings, diagnostic procedures and treatments including colonoscopies, gastroscopies, liver biopsies.

Physicians and nurses are a team here. We spend many hours working together - and we have a good rapport. We also work closely with pre-op and recovery. We work in a very technical environment, and the technology is always changing. We work constantly to keep abreast of the latest technology and we use new equipment. The work we do is physically demanding. We wear heavy lead protective equipment, we stand for hours at a time, and we put pressure on patients' abdomens.

We encourage our staff to maintain their advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) and pediatric advanced life support (PALS) certification. We also support our nurses who receive their Certified Gastroenterology RN (CGRN) certification. We also encourage our staff to attend nursing grand rounds. Our unit council actively works on quality and education projects to improve the care we're providing.

We enjoy a supportive, cohesive atmosphere and our nurses rarely leave.

For more information call Megan Brunovsky at 800-722-9922, option 3, or 802-847-9680 or visit www.fletcherallen.org.

Surgical Services

Orientation

All new nurses work with a preceptor. To orient to prep and recovery you will work with a preceptor for 2 to 3 weeks learning the paperwork and work flow. Our procedure orientation takes a minimum of 6 weeks with a preceptor for basic procedures like upper endoscopy and colonoscopy.

After you have been working in a basic rooms for two months you will then be paired with a preceptor to start learning more technically challenging procedures like ph probe placements and manometries as well as some endoscopic ultrasounds (EUS). Within 4 to 6 months you will orient to being on-call with a preceptor, usually for one weekend a month for three months until you feel comfortable learning all the emergency travel cart equipment.

Finally, we will train you on our most technically challenging procedure which is an Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). Your entire training can take as long as a year. Our many experienced nurses will support you and serve as resources as you orient to Endoscopy.