Intensive Care Unit (ICU – CCU) Travel Nursing

According to the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, critical care nursing is a specialty that deals specifically with human responses to life-threatening problems. This definition casts a very wide net that could include ER, ICU, CCU, CVICU, PCU, SDU and potentially other nursing units. This blog post will focus on travel nursing jobs in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) or Critical Care Unit (CCU), which we’ll collectively refer to as ICU from here on. Understanding the general landscape of ICU travel nursing will help ICU nurses get the most out of their experience.

Intensive Care Unit (ICU – CCU) Travel Nursing Job Outlook

ICU was listed as one of Healthcare Traveler Magazine’s 7 most in demand specialties for 2013. This is no surprise as ICU is always an in-demand specialty relative to other specialties. Despite the reported high demand, there are several factors pertaining to the ICU job outlook that ICU nurses should consider.

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First, some hospitals seek out very specific skill sets for their ICU candidates. This is important because ICU is a very broad specialty. Different hospitals can organize their ICUs in different ways which will expose ICU nurses to different patient populations and therefore lead to the development of differing skills. So some hospitals look for candidates with experience in ICUs that mirror their own ICU. This can mean that they look for candidates who have experience with similar patient populations, similar unit bed sizes, similar hospital bed sizes, or similar equipment and procedures.

For this reason, it’s a good idea for nurses interested in ICU travel jobs to complete an ICU Skills Checklist in order to get an idea of the breadth of their skills within the specialty. This way, you’ll easily be able to identify your strengths and weaknesses. This will help you find jobs that you’re well suited for.

Second, many hospitals maintain stricter experience requirements for their ICU candidates than they do for other specialties. It’s very common these days for hospitals to require a minimum of 2 years of experience for their ICU travelers. It’s also becoming more common for them to require 3-5 years of experience.

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Finally, despite the higher demand for ICU relative to other specialties, ICU nurses should still expect shorter lead times when securing their travel jobs. Lead times are still running at about 3 weeks. This means that hospitals will release job orders 3 weeks before they intend the nurse to start the job. And the lead time can be much shorter for the highest paying travel nursing jobs.

Intensive Care Unit (ICU – CCU) Travel Nursing Licenses and Certifications

BLS and ACLS certifications are standard requirements for ICU travel jobs. As always, it’s imperative that these certifications be obtained through the American Heart Association (AHA). The vast majority of hospitals require certification through the AHA and those that don’t require it will accept it.

Like all travel nurses, ICU travelers should obtain a state nursing license prior to attempting to land a job in the state in question. There are very few facilities that will accept a submission profile without a license verification from their state’s Board of Nursing. Deciding where to start can be difficult for those new to travel. Our article on the subject, Deciding Where to Travel as a Travel Nurse, can help you formulate a strategy.

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Finally, there are a host of certifications that some hospitals require. On rare occasions, hospitals require their ICU travelers to have PALS certification, even though the nurse will not be working with children. A Certification for Critical Care Registered Nurses (CCRN) from the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) is also required on rare occasions. And some hospitals require their ICU travelers to obtain some form of EKG certification. These certifications are typically obtained through a qualifying continuing education unit course.

Intensive Care Unit (ICU – CCU) Travel Nursing Job Pay Outlook

The contracts between agencies and their client hospitals typically categorize nursing specialties for billing purposes. For example, one common categorization method is to assign nursing specialties to a “Standard” category or a “Specialty” category. The bill rate for the Specialty category is typically $2 to $8 per hour more than the bill rate for the Standard category.  ICU nursing is classified under the “Specialty” category.

Bill rates for ICU can range from roughly $54 per hour on the low-end to roughly $74 per hour on the high-end depending the state and/or hospital in question. Crisis rate ICU jobs can have higher bill rates and other ICU travel jobs may have bill rates lower than $54 per hour. As you can see, there is a huge gap between the highest and lowest paying jobs for ICU. This is true for all travel nurses. For information on how agencies determine pay based on the bill rate you can review our article on the subject here.

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It’s important to note that ICU travel jobs tend to have a better chance of getting classified as “Crisis Rate” assignments by hospitals. Hospitals are also more likely to assign bonuses for ICU assignments than they are for many other specialties. This is due to the fact that it tends to be more difficult for agencies to find a hospital’s ideal candidate. Increased rates and bonuses serve as an incentive for both agencies and ICU candidates.

Intensive Care Unit (ICU – CCU) Travel Nursing Job Considerations

There are some issues that ICU travel nurses should consider regarding potential work conditions. For example, ICU travel nurses are asked to float more often relative to other specialties. This is because they have the ability to work in multiple units due to their highly advanced skill sets. Some hospitals ask that their ICU travelers float to Stepdown Units (SDU), Direct Observation Units (DOU), or Progressive Care Units (PCU). On rarer occasions, hospitals ask that their ICU travel nurses float to Telemetry and Medical Surgical Units. Rarer still, some hospitals will ask that their ICU travel nurses float to PACU or ER units. Therefore, it’s prudent for ICU travel nurses to ask about these policies during their interview with the hospital.

ICU travel nurses should also remember that different hospitals will organize their ICUs in different ways. This means nurses can be exposed to different types of patients, procedures, and equipment than they’re used to seeing. Therefore, it’s recommended to ask for specifics about the unit during your travel nursing interview to ensure you don’t walk into a situation unprepared.

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ICU is a great specialty for travel assignments. Even when the travel job market is bad, ICU is still pretty good. You might have to be a little more flexible and you may have a shorter lead time for your next assignment, but there always seems to be work available.