Qualifications/Skills of an ICU Nurse

Becoming an ICU nurse is a journey that all starts with becoming an RN. To do this, you must graduate from an accredited nursing program, take and pass the NCLEX exam, and then gain some clinical skills as a RN.

Most of the time, you will need to acquire some experience working in a hospital before moving to the ICU. This is because patients in the ICU are among the sickest and most vulnerable patients in the hospital and require the highest levels of care. You must be ready to work in such a high-stakes environment. 

Increasingly, nurses, including ICU nurses, are pursuing certification to demonstrate their commitment to ongoing education in their specialty--and their commitment to their patients, their colleagues, and the profession of nursing. 

Basic certifications to be qualified as an ICU nurse: Basic Life Support (BLS) and Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certifications.

But many nurses are taking it another step further. The American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) is the world's largest specialty nursing organization. The AACN Certification Corporation offers many options for certifications for different ICU specialties and subspecialties--with most being a variation of the Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN) certification. 

The certifications for ICU nurses include:

• --CCRN (pediatric)
• --CCRN (neonatal)
• --CCRN-K (acute / critical care knowledge professional)
• --CCRN-E (Tele-ICU acute/critical care nursing)
• --PCCN (progressive care nursing)
• --CSC (cardiac surgery)
• --CMS (cardiac medicine)

The AACN offers numerous resources to help you prepare for certification, including online review courses and online practice questions. 

Eventually, you could even consider pursuing the advanced practice route, which typically requires a graduate degree or graduate coursework. Advanced practice nurses have more responsibilities, and accordingly, they tend to earn larger salaries. 

Read More About ICU Travel Nursing Salary and Requirements from the link below.