The Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN), represents more than 41,000 registered nurses in the United States and abroad who facilitate the management, teaching and practice of perioperative nursing

Perioperative nursing

Perioperative nursing is a nursing specialty that works with patients who are having operative or other invasive procedures. Perioperative nurses work closely with surgeons, nurse anesthetists, surgical technologists, and nurse practitioners...

, or who are enrolled in nursing education or engaged in perioperative research. Its members also include perioperative nurses who work in related business and industry sectors.

Mission

The AORN mission is to support perioperative nurses

Perioperative nursing

Perioperative nursing is a nursing specialty that works with patients who are having operative or other invasive procedures. Perioperative nurses work closely with surgeons, nurse anesthetists, surgical technologists, and nurse practitioners...

in achieving optimal outcomes for patients undergoing operative and other invasive procedures. AORN promotes quality patient care by providing its members with education, standards, services and representation.

History

The first groups of organized OR nurses were concerned with many of the same issues AORN and the profession of OR nursing faces today, including standardizing OR techniques and education programs and promoting friendship among OR nurses. Between 1916 and 1949, several OR nursing groups formed in various parts of the country, leading to the formal recognition of AORN as a national association. Major milestones in the association's history include:

• The first national conference, now called congress, in 1954
• The establishment of a constitution, bylaws and national officers, AORN Board of Directors
• The debut of the AORN Journal in 1963
• Standards for Administrative and Clinical Practice in the Operating Room, now called Perioperative Standards and Recommended Practices, booklet published in 1965
• Throughout the years, AORN's has focused on positive patient outcomes. Today, the rallying cry is "patient safety first" and the significant role perioperative nurses play in creating a culture of patient safety that leads to a quality, caring perioperative experience for surgical patients.

As champions for patient safety, AORN is involved in efforts that advance perioperative professionals and their profession. These activities include:

• Offering quality educational opportunities that specifically address the perioperative setting
• Setting standards for quality perioperative care and demonstrating how best practices can be implemented in the day-to-day work environment
• Facilitating a community of perioperative professionals that enables sharing of best practices
• Creating awareness and celebrating the value and skills of the perioperative nurse
• Empowering perioperative registered nurses to engage in efforts to shape legislative and health policy issues
• Securing resources to enable advancements in education and research in perioperative surgical care

AORN Congress

AORN Congress is the largest education and networking conference of perioperative nurse professionals in the world, and the largest surgical products trade show in the US. To date there have been a total of 58 Congresses dating back to 1954.

List of Congress Sites and Dates:

1st: New York, Feb. 1-3, 1954

2nd: St. Louis, Jan. 24-27, 1955

3rd: Boston, Jan. 30 - Feb 1, 1956

4th: Los Angeles, Feb. 18-21, 1957

5th: Philadelphia, Feb. 10-13, 1958

6th: Houston, Feb. 9-12, 1959

7th: New York, Feb. 22-26, 1960

8th: San Francisco, Feb. 13-17, 1961

9th: Denver, Feb. 19-22, 1962

10th: Washington, DC, Feb. 18-21, 1963

11th: Dallas, March 2-5, 1964

12th: New York, Feb. 7-11, 1965

13th: Chicago, Feb. 20-24, 1966

14th: San Diego, Feb. 19-23, 1967

15th: Boston, Feb. 18-22, 1968

16th: Cincinnati, Feb 24-27, 1969

17th: Anaheim, Feb. 22-26, 1970

18th: Las Vegas, Feb. 8-12, 1971

19th: Houston, Jan. 29-Feb. 2, 1972

20th: Chicago, March 17-23, 1973

21st: New Orleans, Feb. 10-15, 1974

22nd: Dallas, March 23-28, 1975

23rd: Miami, March 7-12, 1976

24th: Anaheim, March 20-25, 1977

25th: New Orleans, March 12-17, 1978

26th: St. Louis, March 4-9, 1979

27th: Atlanta, March 9-14, 1980

28th: Dallas, March 8-13, 1981

29th: Anaheim, March 7-12, 1982

30th: Houston, April 10-15, 1983

31st: Atlanta, March 4-9, 1984

32nd: Dallas, Feb, 24 - March 1, 1985

33rd: Anaheim, March 9-14, 1986

34th: Atlanta, April 5-10, 1987

35th: Dallas, March 6-11, 1988

36th: Anaheim, Feb. 19-24, 1989

37th: Houston, March 18-23, 1990

38th: Atlanta, April 7-12, 1991

39th: Dallas, March 15-20, 1992

40th: Anaheim, Feb 28 - March 5, 1993

41st: New Orleans, March 13-18, 1994

42nd: Atlanta, March 5-10, 1995

43rd: Dallas, March 3-8, 1996

44th: Anaheim, April 6-11, 1997

45th: Orlando, March 29 - April 2, 1998

46th: San Francisco, March 28 - April 1, 1999

47th: New Orleans, April 2-6, 2000

48th: Dallas, March 11-15, 2001

49th: Anaheim, April 21-25, 2002

50th: Chicago, March 23-27, 2003

51st: San Diego, March 21-25, 2004

52nd: New Orleans, April 3-7, 2005

53rd: Washington, DC, March 19-23, 2006

54th: Orlando, March 11-15, 2007

55th: Anaheim, March 30 - April 3, 2008

56th: Chicago, March 15-19, 2009

57th: Denver, March 13-18, 2010

58th: Philadelphia, March 18-24, 2011


Future Congress Dates:

59th: New Orleans, March 24-29, 2012

60th: San Diego, March 2-7, 2013

61st: Chicago, March 29 - April 3, 2014

62nd: Denver, March 7-12, 2015

63rd: Anaheim, April 2-7, 2016

External links

• AORN Congress
• AORN Journal