Healthcare Practitioners
Critical Care Nurses
Also called: Certified Critical Care Nurse, Critical Care Nurse Practitioner, Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN), ICU Critical Care NP (Intensive Care Unit Critical Care Nurse Practitioner)
US median pay
$97,550
per year, 2025
Job growth 2025–35
+5.6%
faster than average
Openings a year (US)
180,800
3,465,400 employed
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree
Preparation 4/5 · Considerable preparation
What this job is
Provide specialized nursing care for patients in critical or coronary care units.
What they do day to day
- Evaluate patients' vital signs or laboratory data to determine emergency intervention needs.
- Monitor patients for changes in status and indications of conditions such as sepsis or shock and institute appropriate interventions.
- Administer medications intravenously, by injection, orally, through gastric tubes, or by other methods.
- Monitor patients' fluid intake and output to detect emerging problems, such as fluid and electrolyte imbalances.
- Prioritize nursing care for assigned critically ill patients, based on assessment data or identified needs.
- Compile and analyze data obtained from monitoring or diagnostic tests.
- Conduct pulmonary assessments to identify abnormal respiratory patterns or breathing sounds that indicate problems.
- Assess patients' pain levels or sedation requirements.
- Collaborate with other health care professionals to develop and revise treatment plans, based on identified needs and assessment data.
- Document patients' medical histories and assessment findings.
Skills and knowledge that matter most
Skills
- Social Perceptiveness4.0/5
- Service Orientation4.0/5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.9/5
- Coordination3.9/5
- Complex Problem Solving3.9/5
- Operations Monitoring3.4/5
- Time Management3.2/5
- Instructing3.2/5
Knowledge
- Medicine and Dentistry4.7/5
- Customer and Personal Service4.2/5
- Psychology4.1/5
- English Language4.1/5
- Biology3.9/5
- Mathematics3.8/5
Importance rated by people working in the job (1 = not important, 5 = extremely important).
Education and preparation
Preparation level 4 of 5 — Considerable preparation. Usually a bachelor's degree and several years of related experience.
Typical entry education (BLS): Bachelor's degree.
Highest education of people in this job:
- Bachelor's degree50%
- Associate's degree36%
- Master's degree11%
Who this job suits
Mostly Social
Helping, teaching and caring for people
Investigative
Ideas, research and solving problems
Conventional
Organising data, details and procedures
Based on the Holland (RIASEC) interest profile for this occupation.