USAF Nursing CCATT/TCCET

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Hello,

I am currently in nursing school and the military has always been something that I have wanted to pursue. And now that I am on my way to be a registered nurse, I think it would be great to be able to be a nurse in the military. The Air Force in particular really interests me because I would really love the opportunity to serve on a CCATT or TCCET team. It seems like something I would really love to do and would be such a great opportunity! With that being said is there any prior military nurses that have any information or experience with this? I would love to know more and about the experiences and processes. I know you have to be either a ER or ICU nurse and that is what I am going to try to find a job in once i graduate so I can get some experience under my belt in those fields.

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I'll be happy to answer any questions about CCATT

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Awesome! What is the likelihood of being able to become a CCATT nurse. I have heard you have to go in as an ICU nurse with some experience. Also what is the day to day life like and what are the odds of deployment I would love to get the opportunity that.

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You have to be an ICU RN or and ER RN with at least 1 year time on station to be considered for CCATT. CCATT is not your primary job. You will be an ER or ICU nurse as your full time job. You can talk to your Nurse Manager to let them know your interest in CCATT. Once selected, you will go to a school for CCATT and once you validate, you will be placed on an on call rotation for CCATT missions. For deployment, it can either be for CCATT or ICU.

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Thanks so much!!

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You are welcome. Anytime.

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Specializes in MICU, Burn ICU.
You have to be an ICU RN or and ER RN with at least 1 year time on station to be considered for CCATT. CCATT is not your primary job. You will be an ER or ICU nurse as your full time job. You can talk to your Nurse Manager to let them know your interest in CCATT. Once selected, you will go to a school for CCATT and once you validate, you will be placed on an on call rotation for CCATT missions. For deployment, it can either be for CCATT or ICU.

Hello! I'm hoping both of you are still available to respond. I am too currently in nursing school with an interest in serving. I thought to myself right after school with 6+ months BICU/ICU experience (Burns is my dream job) that applying as a commissioned officer for the AF while I have no family/children would be the best time to do it. Initially I planned travel nursing but again, I have no real obligations just yet so that can wait. CCATT seems to be more on the critical side vs flight nursing - I do not want to lose my future critical care skills and have a challenge with limited supplies.

That being said, what do you mean by "at least 1 year time on station" to be considered CCATT? Will it be okay to start applying for AF as CO 6 months into nursing experience since it may take over a year to finally be part of a CCATT? Is it competitive? Since it is part of the Reserves, are their any drills to attend when not deployed? How long can deployment last/how often? Length of contract? Any cons of the profession will also be helpful!

Researching about the CCATT is tough, there aren't many information out there and the website keeps things private. Would love to learn more of your experience/background. Thanks in advance

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SqrB3ar,

There is a difference between active duty CCATT and reserve CCATT. Gptgirl did a great job describing what CCATT is like as an active duty nurse; it is a side-gig to your primary Air Force ICU or ED job.

In the Reserve, you can interview directly for CCATT openings on Reserve CCATT teams and commission directly into them. It is your only Air Force (Reserve) job in this case, but still think of it as a side gig to your civilian ICU or ED job.

Hope this helps some.

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Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

You need to decide whether you want to do active duty AF (full-time) or AF reserves (part-time). There are CCATT jobs in both active and reserves components. For either CCATT role, you need 1 year of experience as an ICU or ER nurse.

There actually are a few limited full-time CCATT active duty jobs. I know there is one in Guam and I'm pretty sure Kadena (Japan) also has one. Those full-time CCATT jobs are much harder to get on active duty. Most active duty AF CCATT nurses do it as a part-time gig.

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Hello, 

I see that the last post was in 2018. Hopefully some of you have more answers and are still active with this site. I also have been doing some research on TCCET and haven't had much luck. Once I graduate, I plan on getting a year of experience in med/surge and then transition to ICU or ER for a year after that. After getting a year of experience in ICU/ER, I would like to go into the Air Force Reserves for TCCET or CCATT. I was wondering which bases I would be limited to with if I were to have one of these as my deployment team.

Also, would I be better off going into the reserves as a med-surge nurse (after a year of experience) and then transferring to critical care with TCCET after I get a year of experience in the ER/ICU? If you have any other information or suggestions you'd like to share, please do!

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