What Continuing Education and Training Courses Does AORN Offer?

AORN (the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses) offers continuing education and training through its online courses and facility subscriptions, with credits reported in CH (contact hours), AEU (AORN Education Units), and IPCH (IPCH credits). The courses named on its site target two specific groups: nurses new to the operating room, and labor and delivery nurses who take part in Cesarean section procedures. If you are outside those groups, the site's listed course catalog is narrower than the full range of perioperative education AORN describes.

Courses named on the site

Periop 101 OR

This is an online course that prepares novice nurses for the operating room. AORN describes it as part of the full Periop 101 Program, so the OR course is one component rather than the whole program. The credit values above are the ones listed for this course.

Cesarean section course

AORN describes this as a hybrid course for new and returning labor and delivery nurses who participate in Cesarean section procedures. Its stated purpose is to provide the clinical foundation for safe surgical practice in that setting. Because it is hybrid, expect both online and in-person components; the site does not detail the split.

Facility subscription

This is an online facility subscription that provides access to the most current AORN Guidelines for Perioperative Practice, along with a complete set of implementation tools and resources. AORN frames it as a way to apply standardized techniques facility-wide. It is a subscription for a facility rather than an individual course, and no credit values are listed for it.

What the credits mean

AORN reports course credit in three units: CH, AEU, and IPCH. The site lists all three for the Periop 101 OR and Cesarean section courses, and lists none for the facility subscription. Whether a given unit satisfies your state board, employer, or certification requirement depends on your own licensing and credentialing rules, which the site does not address.

Other education-related activity on the site

Beyond the courses above, the site points to:

• Guideline and Leadership Workshops — practical, interactive learning intended to strengthen expertise and leadership; registration is open.
• AORN Guidelines — evidence-based guidelines that AORN says define standards helping keep healthcare workers and surgical patients safe.
• Nursing Research Symposium — abstract submissions are open.
• Awards — nominations for the Award for Excellence and Individual Achievement Awards.

How to decide whether this fits you

• You are a nurse new to the OR: the Periop 101 OR course is the named option, and it sits inside the larger Periop 101 Program.
• You are a labor and delivery nurse involved in C-sections: the hybrid Cesarean section course is the named option.
• You need your whole team working from current guidelines: the facility subscription is the named option, and it is purchased at the facility level.
• You want to sample AORN before committing: the site advertises a membership trial for $1 giving 2 months of full access, with cancellation at any time. The site does not state a regular membership price, so treat the $1 figure as trial pricing only.

The site does not publish prices for the courses or the facility subscription, and it does not state whether any of these require login or membership to enroll. Confirm cost, enrollment requirements, and whether your specific credit needs are met directly with AORN before registering.