Recovery (PACU), Day Surgery and Pre-Admission Nurses - Talent Pool

Macquarie University Health; Ryde; On-site; AUD 83,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Macquarie University Health is seeking experienced Registered Nurses to join our Recovery/PACU, Pre-Admission Clinic, Day Surgery and Endoscopy teams in a teaching precinct at North Ryde.

These roles offer a base salary from $82,666 to $110,115 per annum, with 12% superannuation and salary packaging options. Opportunities exist across full-time, part-time and casual rosters, largely weekday shifts for a balanced lifestyle.

Qualifications

• Current registration as a Registered Nurse with no restrictions.
• Experience in Recovery/PACU, pre-admission, day surgery or endoscopy.
• Post‑anaesthetic and peri‑procedural knowledge and skills.
• Advanced Life Support certification, or willingness to obtain.
• Strong communication, education and health literacy skills.
• Commitment to continuing professional development in perioperative practice.

Responsibilities

• Deliver post‑anaesthetic nursing care in Recovery/PACU including airway and haemodynamic monitoring.
• Complete pre‑admission assessment, risk screening and patient education.
• Provide admission, peri‑procedural and post‑procedural care in Day Surgery and Endoscopy.
• Contribute to discharge decision‑making and patient carer education.
• Apply safety standards, infection prevention and accurate clinical documentation.
• Support students and colleagues, participating in quality improvement activities.

Skills

Registered Nurse

Advanced life support

Perioperative care

Job description

Recovery (PACU), Day Surgery and Pre-Admission Nurses - Talent Pool

• Appointment Type: Registered Nurse opportunities on a full-time, part-time and casual basis across Recovery/PACU, the Pre-Admission Clinic, Day Surgery and Endoscopy.
• Salary Package: Base salary from $82,666 - $110,115 per annum (Registered Nurse Year 2-8, pay grade based on relevant experience), plus 12% superannuation and access to salary packaging via Maxxia to maximise your take-home pay.
• The Role: Prepare patients for surgery and safely guide their recovery and discharge, working alongside anaesthetists, surgeons, proceduralists, nursing colleagues and students.
• Work-Life Balance: Largely weekday rosters with limited or no night shift, and flexible full-time, part-time and casual arrangements to suit your life outside of work.
• Grow With Us: Build broad perioperative experience in a teaching environment where healthcare, education and research are delivered together in one integrated precinct.

Drive innovation in healthcare, transform patient outcomes, and advance your career today.

At Macquarie University Health, we are always looking for experienced nurses to contribute to our high-performing perioperative teams at Macquarie University Hospital, Wallumattagal Campus, North Ryde. We maintain an ongoing talent pool for current and upcoming opportunities in Recovery/Post-Anaesthesia Care Unit (PACU), the Pre-Admission Clinic, Day Surgery and Endoscopy, the areas that prepare patients for surgery and safely guide their recovery and discharge. These roles are largely rostered across weekdays, with limited or no night shift, which many experienced nurses find valuable when balancing caregiving responsibilities, returning from parental leave, or stepping away from rotating rosters without leaving acute practice.

About the Role

Working across the ambulatory stages of the surgical journey, you will complete pre-operative assessment and patient education, provide immediate post-anaesthetic care, and contribute to discharge decision‑making for short‑stay episodes, in a precinct where clinical care, teaching and research operate side by side.

Our teams support specialty lists across neurosurgery and spine, orthopaedics, cardiothoracic and interventional cardiology, general and bariatric surgery, colorectal, urology and robotic surgery, ear, nose and throat including cochlear implants, ophthalmology, breast and endocrine, gynaecology, plastic and reconstructive surgery, vascular surgery, interventional radiology and endoscopy, so you will build broad experience alongside clinicians, researchers and students in an academic health precinct.

Depending on your experience and the area you are appointed to, your key areas of responsibility may include:

• Delivering immediate post‑anaesthetic nursing care in Recovery/PACU, including airway management, haemodynamic monitoring, pain and nausea management, and escalation of deteriorating patients.
• Completing pre‑admission assessment, risk screening, investigation review and patient education, and liaising with anaesthetists, surgeons, proceduralists and allied health to optimise patients for surgery.
• Providing admission, peri‑procedural and post‑procedural care in Day Surgery and Endoscopy, including sedation recovery and clinical handover.
• Contributing to discharge decision‑making for short‑stay episodes, including discharge criteria assessment, wound and medication education, carer instructions and follow‑up arrangements.
• Applying patient safety standards including surgical safety checklists, infection prevention, clinical documentation in the electronic medical record, medication safety and incident reporting.
• Supporting students, new staff and colleagues in a teaching environment, and participating in quality improvement, audit and professional development activities.

Opportunities arise at Registered Nurse level, and from time to time at senior and specialist levels. You are welcome to register your interest through this talent pool regardless of level. Please tell us the level and area you are seeking in your cover letter.

Roster Information

Recovery/PACU, Pre‑Admission, Day Surgery and Endoscopy operate predominantly across weekdays, with limited or no night shift. Some roles include late lists, extended shifts and, where applicable to the area, weekend or on‑call arrangements. We support a range of full‑time, part‑time and casual arrangements, and specific shift patterns, hours and line allocations will be confirmed for each opportunity.

About Us

Macquarie University Health brings together clinical care, education and research in Australia's first fully integrated academic health precinct located on a university campus. Our hospital and clinics sit alongside the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, enabling clinicians, researchers, students and staff to work together to improve patient outcomes. Our mission is simple and enduring: Heal. Learn. Discover. Our commitment to compassionate, coordinated and evidence‑based care continues to guide everything we do.

About You

You are a clinically skilled Registered Nurse with recent acute care experience, a strong patient focus and genuine enthusiasm for working as part of a multidisciplinary team. You bring sound clinical judgement, excellent communication and patient education skills, and a commitment to continuing your professional development within perioperative practice.

Selection Criteria

• Current registration as a Registered Nurse (from Division 1) with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, with no restrictions on practice.
• Demonstrated experience in Recovery/PACU, pre‑admission, day surgery, endoscopy or a comparable acute care setting, with transferable post‑anaesthetic or peri‑procedural skills.
• Sound post‑anaesthetic and peri‑procedural knowledge, including airway and haemodynamic assessment, pain and nausea management, sedation recovery, infection prevention and recognition of the deteriorating patient.
• Current advanced life support certification, or willingness to obtain, along with effective clinical assessment, prioritisation and escalation skills.
• Strong communication, education and health literacy skills, with the ability to prepare patients and carers for surgery, recovery and discharge.
• Commitment to continuing professional development, quality improvement and supporting the learning of students and colleagues; postgraduate qualifications in perioperative, post‑anaesthetic or critical care nursing are highly regarded.

A Place Where You Belong

At Macquarie, we believe diversity makes us stronger, inclusion drives our success, and belonging inspires us to do our best work. We are proud to foster a community where different backgrounds, identities, and experiences are valued, and where our people are empowered to thrive through supportive leadership, shared responsibility, and a deep commitment to genuine care and respect for our community. Find out more about our vision for a truly inclusive workplace in our Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging Framework.

Learn More

Discover the unique career opportunities we can offer by visiting our Careers Page.

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