What Do Critical Care Nurse Do?
Critical Care Nurse Definition Provide advanced nursing care for patients in critical or coronary care units.
Life As a Critical Care Nurse
- Conduct pulmonary assessments to identify abnormal respiratory patterns or breathing sounds that indicate problems.
- Document patients’ treatment plans, interventions, outcomes, or plan revisions.
- Advocate for patients’ and families’ needs, or provide emotional support for patients and their families.
- Supervise and monitor unit nursing staff.
- Participate in the development, review, or evaluation of nursing practice protocols.
- Prioritize nursing care for assigned critically ill patients, based on assessment data or identified needs.
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Skills Needed to be a Critical Care Nurse
When polled, Critical Care Nurses say the following skills are most frequently used in their jobs:
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Service Orientation: Actively looking for ways to help people.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Reading Comprehension: Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Social Perceptiveness: Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Types of Critical Care Nurse Jobs
- Neonatal Critical Care Nurse
- ICU Staff Nurse (Intensive Care Unit Staff Nurse)
- Burn Center Nurse
- Step-Down Nurse
- Critical Care Nurse
Is There Going to be Demand for Critical Care Nurses?
There were about 2,955,200 jobs for Critical Care Nurse in 2016 (in the United States). New jobs are being produced at a rate of 14.8% which is above the national average. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts 438,000 new jobs for Critical Care Nurse by 2026. There will be an estimated 203,700 positions for Critical Care Nurse per year.
The states with the most job growth for Critical Care Nurse are Arizona, Utah, and Colorado. Watch out if you plan on working in Rhode Island, Wisconsin, or Connecticut. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Critical Care Nurse Average Salary
The average yearly salary of a Critical Care Nurse ranges between $50,800 and $106,530.
Critical Care Nurses who work in Hawaii, California, or Oregon, make the highest salaries.
How much do Critical Care Nurses make in each U.S. state?
State | Annual Mean Salary |
---|---|
Alabama | $59,470 |
Alaska | $89,310 |
Arizona | $77,000 |
Arkansas | $60,780 |
California | $106,950 |
Colorado | $74,240 |
Connecticut | $81,220 |
Delaware | $74,800 |
District of Columbia | $92,350 |
Florida | $66,210 |
Georgia | $68,950 |
Hawaii | $98,080 |
Idaho | $67,110 |
Illinois | $73,890 |
Indiana | $64,860 |
Iowa | $59,130 |
Kansas | $61,030 |
Kentucky | $63,100 |
Louisiana | $63,970 |
Maine | $67,610 |
Maryland | $76,820 |
Massachusetts | $92,140 |
Michigan | $71,330 |
Minnesota | $78,920 |
Mississippi | $58,490 |
Missouri | $65,130 |
Montana | $67,450 |
Nebraska | $64,470 |
Nevada | $85,620 |
New Hampshire | $72,760 |
New Jersey | $82,750 |
New Mexico | $71,730 |
New York | $85,610 |
North Carolina | $64,850 |
North Dakota | $65,740 |
Ohio | $66,820 |
Oklahoma | $63,080 |
Oregon | $91,080 |
Pennsylvania | $70,390 |
Rhode Island | $78,420 |
South Carolina | $64,940 |
South Dakota | $58,340 |
Tennessee | $61,320 |
Texas | $72,890 |
Utah | $65,670 |
Vermont | $69,160 |
Virginia | $69,790 |
Washington | $82,670 |
West Virginia | $61,780 |
Wisconsin | $71,470 |
Wyoming | $67,360 |
What Tools do Critical Care Nurses Use?
Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Critical Care Nurses may use on a daily basis:
- Microsoft Office
- Web browser software
- Word processing software
- Microsoft SharePoint
- MEDITECH software
- Google Drive
- Epic Systems
- Oracle Taleo
- GE Healthcare Centricity EMR
- eClinicalWorks
- e-MDs software
- Allscripts Professional EHR
- SOAPware EMR
- ChartWare EMR
- NextGen Healthcare Information Systems EMR
- SynaMed EMR
- Texas Medical Software SpringCharts EMR
- MicroFour PracticeStudio.NET EMR
- Cerner Millennium
- StatCom Patient Flow Logistics Enterprise Suite
How do I Become a Critical Care Nurse?
What education or degrees do I need to become a Critical Care Nurse?
How Long Does it Take to Become a Critical Care Nurse?
Critical Care Nurses Sector
The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.
You May Also Be Interested In…
Are you already one of the many Critical Care Nurse in the United States? If you’re thinking about changing careers, these fields are worth exploring:
References:
Image Credit: Aleksahgabrielle via Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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