What is an ER Travel Nursing Job and Why it is the Right Job for You
Tired of having a monotonous day at your job? Because being an Emergency Room Travel nurse is anything but ordinary. Every day you can expect a new adventure in the ER. As an ER nurse you can expect to treat emergency cases like heart attacks, treating patients from car accidents, or assisting for emergency surgery. Other than critical cases that need immediate attention, you can also be assigned to treat non-emergency cases like treating lacerations, or applying ice to a patient’s injury.
However as an ER nurse you can be tasked not only to care for the patient’s welfare but need to be well-versed in office work such as record-keeping and writing, charting, communication to other departments, lab work, and keeping up with the various medications of the patients.
ER nurses do invaluable work in the hospital. One ER shift is never boring. As a nurse of the emergency room, you are expected to handle and interact with state-of-the art medical technology and be the caring hand for the patients. As an ER travel nurse you can be assigned to major cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco and New York or assigned to a quiet small town in Maine, Alaska or Arizona.
What is an ER Travel Nursing Job?
As soon as a patient arrives through the doors, an ER nurse is tasked with the patient’s health and condition. In order to become an efficient ER nurse you must immediately assess the patient’s condition accurately and correctly and relay your observation of the signs and symptoms to the attending physician.
An ER nurse’s responsibilities range from assisting in treatment, answering patient’s questions about prescription, administering IV’s, giving medication and inserting injections. ER nurses must be knowledgeable in the hospital discharge policies, as well as government policies on treating, transferring, and discharging patients from the hospital, this is vital as to protect the best interest of the hospital and the patient in legal matters.
If a patient is ready to be discharged from the ER, you as the ER nurse must teach the patient and the patient’s guardian about after care treatment they can do at home. To do this, an ER nurse needs to have a calm yet pleasing personality even when under pressure in the ever stressful and fast atmosphere at the emergency room.
Salary and Benefits as an ER Travel Nurse
If you choose to become an ER travel nurse you can expect added benefits like insurance, travel expenses reimbursements and allowance, housing benefits, and other bonuses. If you want to increase your salary you can add to it .
If you are more than qualified to be an ER travel nurse and have studied for other added certificates like CPEN or CEN, your compensation can be increased depending on your qualifications.
If you know that you are qualified and have the skills to be an ER travel nurse then be prepared to travel as ER travel nurses are in demand all across the US. As ER travel nurses you get more perks and higher pay than on-site staff nurses.
The level of compensation has factors to consider such as the location where they need a nurse, the skills and qualifications you have as well as experience.
How Can I Become an Emergency Room Travel Nurse?
Like any other nursing requirements, to be an ER nurse first, you must be a graduate with either an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in nursing from an accredited nursing school and after you graduate must pass the nurse licensing exam, the NCLEX-RN to be a licensed and a registered nurse (RN).
ER Travel Nurse Job Requirements
- Valid BLS, ACLS, and PALS from the American Heart Association
- A valid professional license within the state of practice
- The Trauma Nurse Core Course (TNCC) credential is recommended and may be required for specific travel nurse positions
- Other specialty-related certifications are preferred and may be required for specific Emergency Room assignments
- Proof of right to work in the United States
- Years of ER experience in a hospital setting
- Certificates such as CEN, CTRN or CPEN is not a requirement but is preferred
Is Being an ER Travel Nurse the Job For you?
Being an emergency room travel nurse, you will have the chance to apply what you have worked and studied for at nursing school in real life. Being an ER travel nurse is a rewarding and fulfilling career where you play an important role in your career as a nurse in medicine as well as providing the care and attention to your patients who need it.