Career Summary

A flight nurse is a registered nurse that with intensive care nursing experience as well as emergency nurse and critical care nurse skills. They deal with a large variety of emergencies under numerous conditions.

There are a large variety of employers that require the expertise of a flight nurse. Some work on medical emergency teams that reach critically injured or ill patients in remote areas and treat them while airlifting the patient to a healthcare facility. Other flight nurses work with teams that land at disaster sites such as industrial accidents and natural disasters such as tornados and earthquakes. They fly with the seriously injured to hospital trauma centers where they can receive additional care.

Some large airlines have flight nurses available to fly with patients who require specific medical needs from one location to anther. These nurses have access to the patient's medical history and needs so they have the necessary medical supplies and equipment to handle any emergencies or problems that could occur during the flight. Some of the many employers that hire flight nurses are private or community hospitals, airlines, medical emergency disaster teams, and private individuals.

Common responsibilities include:

• Checking, monitoring and inventory management of medical supplies for each flight.

• Treating individuals without hospital backup and managing emergency issues in flight.

• Traveling to disaster areas to support emergency response teams.

• Traveling with private individuals or groups of individuals that require medical attention or the ability to have medical attention at all times.

• Performing all necessary emergency and non-emergency medical procedure while in flight or at the scene of disasters and emergencies.

• Coordinating training and workshops for others.