How helpful is ICU/ED experience before cath lab? I have 4 years experience in tele and would rather go straight to cath lab than start in ICU/ED.

When you work in Cath Lab or the Cardiac Electrophysiology lab, if your patient codes, you are expected to give ACLS meds and shock externally until the Code Blue team arrives, because you are performing the procedure with a Cardiologist so there is no need to delay ACLS. So ICU experience is preferred.

I worked Cath lab for 20 years. Only ICU/CCU nurses were hired. It's very helpful to have critical nursing experience.