Resources such as seminars, conferences, continuing education modules, and journal articles help them keep up on their fast-paced specialty. If you want a highly predictable life, critical care is not for you. Critical care nurses must be able to explore that which is not well known. Critical care involves many professionals working in an intense setting in a small geographic area. Physicians and nurses work closely and cooperatively.
Successful nurses are able to work with multiple disciplines toward a common goal.
Coordinating services and helping the patient and family make the best decision for the patient is key for critical care nurses. Many hospitals, local colleges, nursing organizations and even professional seminar schools offer classes specific to critical care. Classes on dysrhythmias, hemodynamic monitoring, 12-lead ECGs, and indepth assessment are important in expanding your clinical knowledge. Taking the initiative to seek out these classes also shows your willingness to continue learning. Working on a step-down unit, such as a telemetry or renal unit, offers many of the challenges of critical care but in a slightly less intensive setting.