Trauma Nurse
Duties and Responsibilities: A trauma nurse is a nurse who specializes in acute emergency care
involving severe trauma. They usually work in an emergency room (ER Nurse),
critical care unit, or perhaps for a transport company that specializes in
transporting critical patients to the nearest hospital. A flight nurse would be an example of a trauma nurse working for a transport company.
Salary: Trauma nurses
earn on the higher end of salary ranges for RNs. According to salary
expert.com, the average salary for trauma nurses in major cities ranges from
$80,000 to $128,000. Nationally, the average salary is $58,000, according to
simplyhired.com.
Education: If this
sounds like a nursing path that is for you, you need to first find the right
nursing program. The first step toward any nursing specialty is to become a
licensed registered nurse (RN). There a few different paths toward becoming an
RN. You can earn an associate degree in nursing (ADN) or associate of science
in nursing (ASN), which takes only two to three years. You can also earn a
nursing diploma from a hospital program in just two to three years, although
this option is becoming increasingly less common. Ideally, your best bet is to
earn a bachelor’s of science in nursing (BSN), which will help make you much
more competitive in the trauma nursing job market. Other options are first
earning a diploma or associate degree, which can be a stepping stone toward
later earning a bachelor’s degree through one of the many online rn to bsn
programs offered throughout the country. If you already have a bachelor’s
degree in a different subject area, you can look for an accelerated bsn nursing
program, which will take about two years to complete. Nursing programs will
cover many science and health related subjects, in addition to clinical lab
training in hospitals or clinics. In addition to nursing related topics, you
will study subjects like chemistry, psychology, nutrition, anatomy, physiology,
and microbiology. When you graduate from an accredited nursing program, you
must take the NCLEX-RN, which is the National Council Licensure Examination as
a final step in becoming a nurse in most states.
Reflection: This would be a good job to work as because it’s
not that hard and it seems like a cool
job.