Any Flight Nurses???

[RanchoEMT]

I've looked for Flight Nursing threads but have come up empty... (I'm sure someone can bombard me with a couple links) is anyone currently working as one or does anybody have any thoughts/info on it. HEMS looks interesting and I would love to hear someone ramble about.

 

[HotelCo]

RidRyder is/was a flight nurse, and medicRob did it for a while too, I believe.

 

[akflightmedic]

flightweb.com

 

[VFlutter]

I too, want to be a flight nurse. Not sure what level of education you have but a lot of what I have been reading says BSN RN & EMT-B/P with 3-5 years ICU experience before they will even look at you. Also they really like pre-hospital experience. And of course all of the ACLS,PALS,ITLS,NIMS, Etc classes (instructors preferred)

Except a few months ago a Heli around here crashed from 100ft and all 3 occupants were hurt pretty bad, so thats always something to remember.

 

[sir.shocksalot]

Allnurses has a section for flight nurses. It's under nursing specialties and surface and flight transport nursing. What are your questions about it? If you want to be a flight nurse you'll have to have your RN (obviously) usually a BSN (this does vary), as well as several (3-5) years of ER and ICU experience, although I have heard they greatly prefer ICU experience over ER since most interventions managed by HEMS are in the ICU realm of things. It's an extremely competitive job and given the general state of RN employment right now I think most nurses are having a hard time getting any job, let alone one in flights.

 

[VFlutter]

Oh and CCRN or CFRN

 

[medicdan]

As well as under 6' and less than ~200 lbs with gear, to get on most choppers...

 

[Fly-write]

RanchoEMT,

I work HEMS, but not as a flight nurse. Here is something to get you started. You can sign up for a free ebook via the link.

The Flight Stuff

Good Luck!

 

[RanchoEMT]

like all EMS, I've heard the pay isn't that great, am I miss-informed? I was told the Mercy air guys make somewhere in the twenties...

 

[sir.shocksalot]

RNs in all specialties make a good wage. EMS is poorly compensated due to our general lack of educational standards for entry into the profession. Nurses are all well paid because an associates degree is the bare minimum for entry.

 

[usalsfyre]

like all EMS, I've heard the pay isn't that great, am I miss-informed? I was told the Mercy air guys make somewhere in the twenties...

It's generally less than their hospital counterparts, although still more than an average medic.

 

[medicRob]

RidRyder is/was a flight nurse, and medicRob did it for a while too, I believe.

Still am a flight nurse. I alternate between the trauma team and working as a flight nurse. What do you want to know, RanchoEMT?

 

[RanchoEMT]

Everything!!! I am a sponge... Lifestyle, education, wages, work Pro's/Con's, Regrets, experiences, time spent trying to get a flight job, do you ever think about going even further than RN? Anything/Everything if you have the time. Sorry pre-empt I'm using my phone to write currently and it's taking forever...

Also, What Podcast are you a host on?

and Thank you for your time in responding...

 

[medicRob]

Everything!!! I am a sponge... Lifestyle, education, wages, work Pro's/Con's, Regrets, experiences, time spent trying to get a flight job, do you ever think about going even further than RN? Anything/Everything if you have the time. Sorry pre-empt I'm using my phone to write currently and it's taking forever...

Also, What Podcast are you a host on?

and Thank you for your time in responding...

Lifestyle - Not sure what you mean.

Education - If you are talking about what is required, BSN is preferred, you need ACLS, PALS, BLS, NRP, and PHTLS or ITLS (Instructorships preferred), you will also need one of the following: CFRN, CCRN, or CEN within one year of hire.

If you are not an MSN, you will also need your EMT or Paramedic license.

You will need at a minimum 3 years of experience working either as

A Paramedic in a high density urban 911 system, RN working in a critical care unit (Trauma I Hospitals preferred), or RN working in an emergency department.

The job listings usually say that you need 3-5 years experience, but in reality, most applicants have > 10 years experience.

The Pro's are that you get to bring a more informed care to the field with an expanded skill set, participate in educating fellow EMS Professionals in your community by way of CEU courses, and your scenery changes.

The cons are, you are in cramped quarters, wearing a helmet means you never get a chance to have a good hair day, the pay is typically not as good as what you made in an ICU (After all, there are 100 people lined up just waiting for your job).

As far as further than RN, I am further than RN, I am a Nurse Practitioner. I take my acute care nurse practitioner (ACNP-BC) board examination this month. I have a bachelors of biochemistry, and just took the MCAT so I can begin the admissions process for medical school.

People generally get the wrong idea of what a day is like for HEMS. A lot of what I do involves transporting patients from an ICU of a less capable medical center to the trauma I where they can get the proper definitive care. Whenever we fly out to the scene of a car accident, it is the ground medics that get the patient at their worst typically. By the time we get to the scene, they are usually already stabilized and packaged.


Whenever I show up on a scene, I prefer having the patient loaded in an ambulance so I can get a good listen of their lungs, get a good manual BP, and do a few assessments. By the time we have them in the chopper, this is not really an option.

Podcast - I co-host the official podcast of EMTLife.com (http://emtlife.com/podcast)

 

[RanchoEMT]

good to know, about the patient in ambulance assessment, I'll let my medic know... Lifestyle I was refering to stress/burnout/enjoyment/time for family, etc.

I understand what you mean by being able to bring a more informed level of care to the field... I'm hoping to go to Paramedic school soon, but on the grander scale, what do you think of PA school and other higher level care providers (obviously you are a NP). Note: i'm interested in EMS, do you think one route is more applicable than another in EMS both now and the future.

 

[medicRob]

good to know, about the patient in ambulance assessment, I'll let my medic know... Lifestyle I was refering to stress/burnout/enjoyment/time for family, etc.

I understand what you mean by being able to bring a more informed level of care to the field... I'm hoping to go to Paramedic school soon, but on the grander scale, what do you think of PA school and other higher level care providers (obviously you are a NP). Note: i'm interested in EMS, do you think one route is more applicable than another in EMS both now and the future.

I have several friends who are PA-C's. They are quite capable, and I would feel comfortable being under their care. As far as lifestyle, it can be stressful sometimes, in that you might come across scenes that stick with you. However, this is true of any EMS job. One of the biggest things you will note in HEMS is that you must keep your skills up and keep your finger on the pulse of the latest evidence based research. I enjoy my job very much, in fact, I live for it. I haven't had trouble finding time for family either.