Emergency Room Travel Nursing Jobs

Emergency rooms are on the front lines and must address “true emergencies” with patients coming from diverse backgrounds.

Find the best paid Emergency Room jobs
Start your easy and fast search of Stability Healthcare’s nationwide Emergency Room traveling nurse jobs here. Our mission is to provide the adventure and exploration of travel, along with the comforts of home!

Emergency Room Job Description

Emergency room (ER) nurses provide care for patients requiring emergency attention because of physical trauma or acute illness. ER nurses work to quickly assess the needs of each patient to avoid long-term complications, disabilities, or even death.

Emergency Room Job Requirements

  • Active BLS, ACLS, and PALS from the American Heart Association
  • Active professional license within the state of practice
  • The Trauma Nurse Core Course (TNCC) credential and the Certified Emergency Room Nurse (CEN) Certification is recommended and may be required for specific travel nurse positions, NIHSS (stroke scale) is relevant for stemi centers
  • Other specialty-related certifications are preferred and may be required for specific Emergency Room assignments
  • ER experience in a hospital setting
  • Minimum of 2 years of experience as an RN

 

 

What is an Emergency Room Nurse?

Unlike other units, the ER nurse can play different roles. Most emergency room nurses take on multiple roles throughout their careers. ER nurses treat patients suffering from trauma, injury, or severe medical conditions requiring urgent care. They work in crises that primarily require instant attention.

  • Trauma Nurse: Works in Trauma Centers and helps patients who come in by ambulance, helicopter, or personal vehicles.
  • Code Nurse: Works in Code Rooms where the sickest patients go in the emergency room.
  • Triage Nurse: Works in the emergency room, sorting patients based on their vital signs, complaints, and resources to help decide who gets seen first by a provider.
  • Flight Nurse: Works out of helicopters and planes to transport critically injured or ill patients transported between emergency departments.
  • Critical-Care Transport (CCT) Nurse: Works in ambulances and cares for patients while being transported from one facility to another.
  • Pediatric ER Nurse: Works in the pediatric emergency room caring for patients under the age of 18.
  • Burn Center Nurse: Works in Burn Centers and are specially trained in burn victim resuscitation and burn care.
  • Geriatric ER Nurse: Works in Geriatric Centers and cares primarily for elderly patients who require acute care.
  • Charge Nurse: Works in the emergency room, and it’s the department captain, responsible for staffing, patient assignments, and more.

National average salary: $68,425 per year (Most travel nurses earn higher pay since they are in high demand than their full-time, staff nurse counterparts)

Job outlook: 12% increase by 2028 

Where Do ER Nurses Work?

Most ER nurses work in the emergency departments of hospitals or medical clinics. However, emergency nurses can also find themselves working as flight nurses on search and rescue teams. Interestingly, ER nurses can have a thriving career in the film industry as movie medics. ER nurses can also serve patients on cruise ships since they’re well suited for the unique work environment and challenges this presents.

There are also less hectic work environments for ER nurses, like at schools or walk-in clinics. Most ER nurses can work virtually anywhere. It depends on their certifications and particular skills.

What Kind of Patients Are On the ER Unit?

The emergency room receives every kind of patient. People can come in with headaches, skin infections, back pain, toothaches, and other complaints. Other typical ER visits include foreign objects in the body, skin infections, contusions, cuts, respiratory infections, broken bones, and sprains. These are patients that require immediate and acute care, on-the-clock monitoring, and accurate diagnosis.

What Does an ER Nurse Do?

Emergency room nurses follow very similar duties to other nurses, such as monitoring patients, recording vital signs, administering medications, and so forth. However, ER nurses also experience the pressure and fast-paced environment of the emergency room. An ER nurse’s fundamental role will also vary on her particular skill set, area of emergency covered, and department they work.

Most responsibilities include:

  • Check medical equipment to ensure it’s functioning properly
  • Keep supplies stock between patients
  • Perform or assist with tests like EKGs, electrocardiograms, and blood draws
  • Ask questions to get an accurate idea of the symptoms and condition
  • Maintain detailed charting notes to ensure continuity of care

How Do You Become an ER Nurse?

The first step is to become a registered nurse (RN) by obtaining either an Associate’s Degree in Nursing (ADN) or a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). Next, pass the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN) to get your appropriate license. It’s important to get related emergency experience to later apply for the certification from the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing (BCEN). While this isn’t required, it’s an added plus to your resume. ER nurse certifications will also vary by the type of work you wish to specialize in.

What certifications are commonly held by Emergency Department nurses?

Common certifications:

  • Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN)
  • Certified Flight Registered Nurse (CFRN)
  • Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse (CPEN)
  • Trauma Certified Registered Nurse (TCRN)
  • Certified Transport Registered Nurse (CTRN)

More certifications that some employers may prefer:

  • Covid-19 Certification (Covid-19 Certification)
  • Domestic violence nurse examiner (DVNE)
  • Advanced Disaster Life Support (ADLS)

Benefits Of Traveling With Stability Healthcare

There’s no specific set of qualities required to be an emergency room nurse. It’s more about having particular characteristics that make you well-suited for the job. Emergency nurses must be able to remain calm in highly stressful and high-pressure situations. Having a thirst for knowledge is a common trait among ER nurses that helps them stay on top of the latest developments to be flexible with their treatment recommendations and approaches to certain situations.

Most common skills for ER nurses include:

  • Multitasking
  • Confidence to be firm and direct
  • Teamwork
  • Quickness
  • Calmness
  • Coping skills

Travel Nurse Salary & Benefits

A career in emergency room nursing is ever-changing, exciting, and filled with challenges. If this career path interests you, there’s a journey towards becoming one. By specializing in ER nursing, you have the opportunity to explore working at different settings and locations as a travel nurse practitioner. At Stability Healthcare, travel agency for nurses, we place registered nurses in hospitals across the United States, helping them expand their horizons in specialties like ER care. Contact us today and speak with one of our representatives to get started on sending your job application today.

Career Benefits

Travel Nursing Reviews

Jennifer, RN
5/5

The response time from my recruiter and nurse specialist is amazing! They both have been so great to work with on my first assignment out in California!!! Chad and Samantha both are super caring and very responsive! I already extended my contract with the hospital because of the smooth process. They made the transition from Florida to California a lot loss stressful than I imagined. Would definitely recommend them both!!!

Tammy D.
5/5

My recruiter, and other staff I have had the pleasure of interacting with, are all so friendly and helpful. My recruiter is responsive, and even reached out while she was on vacation to check on me! I’ve worked with other agencies in the past, but Stability is next level when it comes to making your travel nursing experience as seamless as possible! Special shout out to Lindsay (best recruiter ever) and Tracy. Amazing people to work with.

Brittany J.
5/5

My recruiter is very responsive and personable. I have NEVER had any issues with them!! This agency even has PTO! None of my co workers with other agencies have this benefit!! Also the rates are equal or higher than most other agencies!! Everything feels more like family than business and for that I would choose stability over any other agency!! I am so happy I chose to work with them!

Sopheare C.
5/5

My recruiter Amanda is amazing and always timely with her responses. Debbie who is my nurse experience specialist who is with me all times of the contract is truly awesome. Love how responsive she is and will answer any and all my questions. Big thanks to Jesse my compliance coordinator for making all the appointments and getting me travel ready. Can’t thank my team enough for all they do. Any question or issue I have they resolve right away. And I love that they breakdown each contract into a spread so you know exactly what your getting for the terms of the contract.

Sara R.
5/5

I have been incredibly impressed by the professionalism, ease of communication, ability to have all requirements for onboarding fulfilled in a timely manner, and just overall outstanding service. Lindsay Hernandez is my particular recruiter and she has been a pleasure to work with, as well as all the team members at Stability. I’m looking forward to staying with them for my next assignment. I highly recommend them to my nursing friends, and anyone looking to travel as a nurse!

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