What are the lived career experiences of senior operating department practitioners? An interpretative phenomenological analysis

Rollason, Lee (2025) What are the lived career experiences of senior operating department practitioners? An interpretative phenomenological analysis. Journal of Perioperative Practice. ISSN 1750-4589

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Abstract

Operating department practitioners are registered health care practitioners who provide specialist care to patients across the perioperative environment in the disciplines of anaesthetics, surgery and post-anaesthetic care. There is a significant knowledge gap that surrounds the profession in terms of their career experiences. Using a methodology of interpretative phenomenological analysis, the lived career experiences of six senior operating department practitioners were investigated. Seven themes were identified across the experiences of participants addressing a wide range of topics including issues such as professional development, relationships with other health care professionals, sexual safety, student experiences and visibility. Recommendations based on this study include further investigation of operating department practitioner experiences across a wider demographic, an immediate review of how job adverts are constructed to be more inclusive and a call for increased professional visibility of operating department practitioners. Long-term recommendations include a resolution around the use of Patient Group Directives, workplace culture reviews and a review of theatre-attire appropriateness in relation to sexual safety in the perioperative environment.

Item Type:	Article
Identification Number:	10.1177/17504589251319967
Dates:	Date Event 1 February 2025 Accepted 24 February 2025 Published Online
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Operating department practitioner, ODP, Lived experiences, Career experiences, Workplace culture, Visibility, Phenomenology
Subjects:	CAH02 - subjects allied to medicine > CAH02-05 - medical sciences > CAH02-05-02 - healthcare science (non-specific)
Divisions:	Faculty of Health, Education and Life Sciences > College of Health and Care Professions
Depositing User:	Gemma Tonks
Date Deposited:	12 Mar 2025 10:12
Last Modified:	12 Mar 2025 10:12
URI:	https://www.open-access.bcu.ac.uk/id/eprint/16233

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