Travel Intermediate Care Nurse Jobs

For jobs available on Vivian as of Tuesday, March 21st 2023, the average weekly salary for a Travel Intermediate Care Nurse is $2,279, but can pay up to $4,942 per week.

The agencies on Vivian that currently have the most Travel Intermediate Care Nurse jobs are OneStaff Medical (370), Host Healthcare (357), and TotalMed Staffing (330).

Intermediate care nurses, also called progressive care nurses, are registered nurses who care for patients that require a higher level of care than is provided in a general medical-surgical unit, but don’t require the level of care received in an intensive care unit. Intermediate care units are often referred to as step-down units because patients are often “stepping down”, or transitioning, from the ICU until they’re stable enough to be moved to a med-surg unit or skilled long-term care facility.

Intermediate care nurses frequently care for three or four patients at a time and must check on them hourly. They closely monitor their patients’ vital signs, pain levels, consciousness, and wound sites, if applicable. They may change bandages or administer pain medication, immediately notifying a patient’s doctor if a change in health occurs. Other common tasks include airway management, ventilator support, cardiac telemetry to monitor heart function, administering titratable IV infusions, inserting maintaining chest tubes, and central IV lines.

Candidates must first become certified registered nurses, which involves earning an associate or bachelor’s degree from an accredited nursing program, passing the NCLEX exam and fulfilling state licensing requirements. Further certification requirements include Basic Life Support for Healthcare Professionals and Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support with Progressive Care Certified Nurse credentialing and certification in telemetry preferred. Most facilities require travel IMCU nurses to have one to two years of recent experience in acute care and/or acute care telemetry.

IMCU nurses must have well-rounded nursing skills to care for a variety of patients’ needs in any stepdown unit within the hospital. It’s essential they have solid critical care skills to quickly analyze vitals and react to potentially life-threatening situations. Essential technical skills include advanced knowledge of cardiovascular health, vital sign monitoring, wound dressing, medication dose titration, EKG and echocardiogram monitoring if on a telemetry unit, and detailed record-keeping. 

Intermediate care nurses typically work on step down units in a hospital setting. Many hospitals have stepdown units offering levels of care between the ICU and med-surg unit and between the NICU and pediatric ward. Intermediate care may also be provided near the emergency department or postoperative recovery rooms.

Intermediate care nurses may hold Basic Life Support (BLS) or Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), among others.