Preparing for Move from Tele to ED ... What Certs Should I Have?

3,445 Posts

Specializes in ICU / PCU / Telemetry / Oncology.

Hello,

I am currently a travel nurse in telemetry (have worked both stepdown and med-surg units thanks to some floating) and have been doing this for almost 2 years. I left a perm job on a med/tele unit after just over 2 years to start travel nursing. While I have enjoyed my travel experiences immensely, my desire to transition to the ED is more important right now. So later this year I will look to transition back to staff nursing to learn this new specialty. Will I continue traveling after I get ED experience? Right now I am saying that I will not, but you never know what the future holds. I just know right now that 4 years tele is enough for me and I want a change.

Anyway, cutting to the chase. In preparation for my transition to an ED staff job, I would like to be as prepared as possible to be a competitive candidate for an ED job coming in without ED experience. I currently am BLS and ACLS certified and in a couple of weeks will earn my PALS certification. I am also in the process of completing an Emergency Department Nursing certificate through UC San Diego (finished online courses, just need to complete the preceptorship. This is something I did on my own to demonstrate on paper my commitment to join the specialty). I am on the fence as to whether complete TNCC now or wait until I am on the job, same goes for NRP. CEN of course is out of the question until I am at least a year or two ED experienced. My travel nursing experiences have been in some of the top hospitals in the country (I am hoping my preceptorship will be in my next assignment), basically because I wanted to learn from the best, so I am hoping this also helps give me an edge.

Anything else I should be considering, is my current plan ok? More than likely I will be seeking an ED job in my hometown of NYC which I know is already competitive.

Thanks in advance!