Become a Critical Care Transport Nurse in 3 Steps

Nurse Types / Critical Care Transport Nurse

Sometimes critical care patients require more advanced care than they can receive at a specific hospital or trauma center. When that happens, they depend on the expertise of critical care teams to safely transport them to other treatment centers.

Critical care transport nurses are a vital part of the crew. They work quickly and safely to ensure patients receive the life-saving medical intervention they need when moving between locations.

In this article you’ll learn:

• What is a critical care transport nurse?
• What do critical care transport nurses do?
• Where do critical care transport nurses work?
• What fields are closely related to critical care transport nursing?
• How do you become a critical care transport nurse in 3 steps?
• What are additional requirements for critical care transport nurses?
• What are the salary and career outlooks for critical care transport nurses?
• FAQs

What is a critical care transport nurse?

A critical care transport nurse is part of a critical care transport team trained in advanced life support for patients moving between hospitals or from other locations to emergency or trauma care centers.

As a critical care nurse, you’ll administer life-saving medical treatment to critically ill patients during transport to the hospital or between trauma care facilities. You’ll collaborate with other healthcare providers to ensure patients receive the most appropriate care and interventions.

Qualities of a successful critical care transport nurse

You must stay cool under pressure if you want to work in this nursing field. Critical care transport nursing is fast-paced and high-pressure. You must think on your feet because every decision you make can mean the difference between life and death for your patients.

Other helpful skills include:

• Collaborative. You’ll need to consult other members of the critical care transport team to determine the best way to medically support the patient.
• Organized. You’ll be tasked with preparing materials and medicine needed to keep patients alive during the move.

What do critical care transport nurses do?

Critical care transport nurses assist other members of the team to stabilize patients during moves between locations. They may be going from the site of a traumatic accident or from one hospital to a more advanced treatment facility.

There are a lot of equipment and medical supplies on emergency transport vehicles, including:

• Diagnostic imaging
• Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO)
• Full mechanical ventilation
• Point-of-care lab analysis capabilities (ABG, blood chemistries, hemoglobin, hematocrit)
• Temporary pacemakers
• Ventricular assist devices

Critical care transport nurses must keep the equipment sterilized and ready for use. Monitoring patient progress and notifying the other team members of any issues during transport is a large part of the job.

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A day in the life of a critical care transport nurse

A day in the life of a critical care transport nurse is never boring. You can work in a variety of settings and treat patients with many different kinds of critical care needs. Places a nurse could work include:

• Government agencies
• Hospitals
• Independent transport companies 
• International medical organizations
• Long-term care facilities

One of the hardest parts of your job may be learning how to use all the necessary medical tools to stabilize and treat critically ill patients while in a moving vehicle. Inserting a catheter or a temporary pacemaker can be extra challenging while on the move.

Common conditions treated by critical care transport nurses

Critical care transport nurses can treat patients who have experienced a variety of emergency and trauma situations. Vital organ system failure usually is one of the signs a patient needs to be moved and can include:

• Central nervous system failure
• Circulatory system failure
• Metabolic failure
• Respiratory failure
• Shock

Where do critical care transport nurses work?

Critical care transport nurses generally work outside of traditional healthcare settings like hospitals. You can expect to spend the bulk of your time in:

• Ambulances
• Airplanes 
• Helicopters
• Ships specially outfitted for critical care transport

If you work as a critical care transport nurse, you may have the opportunity to travel with an international medical organization or the military. Some larger companies and hospitals that provide critical care transport also offer their services globally.

What fields are closely related to critical care transport nursing?

If you’re not quite ready to become a critical care transport nurse, you can try out similar occupations first. Emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and paramedics are the most closely related fields to critical care transport nursing.

In either of these roles, you can perform life-saving treatment on patients during transport to a hospital or other healthcare facility.

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How do you become a critical care transport nurse in 3 steps?

Choosing a career in nursing can be exciting and rewarding. Endless options exist for specializing, allowing you to continue to advance and grow your skills.

If you think the field of critical care nursing fits your career goals, you can become a critical care transport nurse by following these three steps.

Step 1 – Become a registered nurse

Critical care transport nurses are registered nurses (RNs) who specialize in emergency moves for patients. The path requires you to first earn your RN licensure.

While you technically can become an RN with an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN), most critical care transport employers require a minimum of a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN).

Earn a BSN degree

You can earn your bachelor’s degree by attending nursing school for 3 to 4 years. Other options include completing an associate’s program, then working to gain experience while you complete your BSN. This is known as an RN-to-BSN program.  

If you already hold a bachelor’s degree in an unrelated field, you can fast track your career with an accelerated BSN program.

Pass the NCLEX-RN exam

Once you have your BSN degree, you must pass the NCLEX-RN exam to earn your licensure. The purpose of the test is to determine if you’ve learned all the vital skills necessary to work as an RN.

You can expect four major categories and eight subcategories on the exam. Using study guides and other tools to prepare can help boost your chances of passing on your first attempt.

Step 2 – Accumulate experience

Once you have your RN licensure, the next step involves gaining experience relevant to critical care nursing. Working in an emergency room or a critical care ICU can help you gain the skills you need to serve critical care patients in a mobile setting.

Helpful skills and experience

Some of the duties you’ll have as a critical care transport nurse align with the kinds of helpful skills and experience you should seek out when preparing for your career. They include:

• Acting as a patient advocate to ensure they receive adequate and appropriate treatment in the healthcare setting
• Collaborating and communicating with other members of a critical care team
• Monitoring, recording, and evaluating vital signs
• Responding to changes in a patient’s condition

Changing specialty to a critical care transport nurse

If you’re an RN already working in nursing, you easily can change your specialty to a critical care transport nurse. 

Let’s say you want to take the skills you’ve learned working in the ICU and put them to use as a critical care transport nurse. You already have the RN licensure and the years of experience in critical care. The only thing left to do is to consider specialty certifications and other professional credentials that prove your knowledge.

Step 3 – Obtain certifications

Several certification options exist for critical care transport nurses. Two of the most popular include:

• Certified Care (Adult) Registered Nurse (CCRN) from the Association of Critical Care Nurses. Most critical care transport nurses and those working in other aspects of emergency care hold this certification.
• Certified Transport Registered Nurse (CTRN) from the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing signifies you hold the highest level of emergency nursing knowledge.  

What are additional requirements of critical care transport nurses?

As a critical care transport nurse, you must commit to staying updated on critical care nursing best practices. You can achieve this by taking continuing education courses geared toward your nursing specialty.

Completing CEUs also is necessary for maintaining your RN license and certain professional certifications you’ve obtained for your field.

What are the salary and career outlooks for critical care transport nurses?

RNs working in all nursing specialties have rosy futures. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts a growth rate of 6% between 2021 and 2031. As a critical care transport nurse, you can expect to earn an average annual salary of $95,990.

Some nurses in this field earn up to $140,000 annually depending on their locations. Some of the highest-paying cities for nurses are all located in California and include:

• San Jose, CA – $155,230
• San Francisco, CA – $151,640
• Vallejo, CA – $146,360

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Job satisfaction

RNs working as critical care transport nurses tend to have high satisfaction with their jobs. Communication was the key factor for most nurses in this specialty for preventing burnout and enjoying their roles.

Next steps

Once you become a critical care transport nurse, there are plenty of opportunities for career advancement. You can continue with your education to become a nurse practitioner (NP), using the skills you learned to serve your patients in a new role.

You also can expand your horizons by choosing a critical care nursing specialty like cardiology or pediatrics.

Do you have questions about how to use your nursing experience to your fullest benefit? You can discuss your options with other nurses in the Incredible Health nursing community.

FAQs

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