Here's a chance to get into an operating room in a big hospital - voluntarily.
To mark National Operating Room Nurse Week, nurses at LDS Hospital will hold a free operating room open house on Saturday. They will conduct tours of five fully equipped operating rooms from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the hospital, Eighth Avenue and C Street.They will show off the latest surgical technology for open-heart operations and organ transplantation as well as laparoscopic, laser and arthroscopic surgery. Refreshments will be served.
"This is a fun opportunity not only for adults but also for kids, because they can come in and have a hands-on learning experience with a variety of medical equipment," said Nancy Bennett, an operating room nurse at LDS Hospital.
Last year, more than 19,000 surgeries were performed at the hospital, including 950 heart-lung bypass operations, 660 gall bladder operations, 3,400 orthopedic procedures, 4,000 general surgeries, 570 total joint surgeries, 61 kidney transplants and several operations to implant artificial hearts.
"The goal of the open house is to help people better understand the role of nurses in the operating room, increase their awareness about important medical advances taking place in the OR and, especially for children, make the operation room a less scary place," said hospital spokesman Jess Gomez.