Responds to emergency calls to provide efficient and immediate care to the critically ill and injured, and transport the patient to a medical facility.
Emergency Nurse Job Description
I work in emergency rooms or trauma centers, specialize in assessing, intervening and stabilizing a variety of trauma and illnesses with decisive action. Due to the range of medical conditions that may require urgent treatment and care, they must be knowledgeable about general as well as specific health issues.
Hospitals and independent emergency departments are the most common employers of emergency nurses. Other facilities that may employ them include cruise ships, prisons and crisis intervention centers. With more specialized training, an emergency nurse can become a transport nurse who administers treatment to patients being transported by airplane or helicopter.
Job Duties
The most important responsibility for an emergency nurse is understanding triage, which is a method of prioritizing injuries based on medical need. An emergency nurse must have the ability to make quick and accurate assessments about incoming patients, including both physical and mental health conditions.
Time management is crucial in this job. Along with triage, emergency nurses must quickly ascertain the following information from incoming patients:
Identify the medical problem
Document medical history
Check for any allergies and current medications
Obtain height, weight, body temperature, heart rate and blood pressure
Other responsibilities include moving patients, taking blood samples, cleaning and bandaging wounds, administering medications and maintaining proper supplies of medical equipment.
As with other health care professionals, emergency nurses are expected to comply with protocols, procedures and safety policies of a health care facility. Emotional stability, communication, leadership, sympathy and attention to detail are traits common among successful emergency nurses.
Education Requirements
Emergency nurses are usually registered nurses with specialized training and education. Many supplement their training with certification in specific areas of emergency health care. To become an emergency nurse, a person must earn an associate degree in nursing, a bachelor's of science degree in nursing or a diploma from a hospital with a nursing program.
Like many occupations, a person with a higher degree has better opportunity for advancement. Emergency nurses continually update their education to maintain knowledge of new procedures. A 2000 report from Nurse Source shows degrees held by registered nurses: