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What Does a Telemetry Nurse Do?

Telemetry nurses are trained to use specialized machines to monitor critically ill or injured patients. The machines are designed to track and display information regarding the patient's blood pressure, blood-oxygen levels, heart rate, and breathing rate. As a telemetry nurse, you care for patients who need special medications, such as anesthesia, or who have recently undergone surgery. You also often care for patients with heart problems for whom the monitoring of electrocardiograms is especially critical. Telemetry nurses work in hospitals and are part of a step-down unit from intensive care.

Education & Training Required to Become a Telemetry Nurse

To become a telemetry nurse, you need a high school diploma, and a bachelor of science in nursing, an associate's degree, or a diploma from a hospital program. You can earn a bachelor's or associate's degree by attending a traditional college, or through an accredited online degree program. To become a registered nurse (RN), you must then pass the National Council Licensure Examination. After 1,750 hours of working as a telemetry nurse, you can take an exam to become a Progressive Care Certified Nurse or PCCN; the extra certification increases your opportunities for career advancement a higher salary.

Typical Characteristics of a Telemetry Nurse

Telemetry nurses should be highly organized and attentive to patients while monitoring their vital signs. As a telemetry nurse, you are at the forefront of new technology in vital sign monitoring, so you should be very interested in keeping abreast of new advances in the field. You should also be able to translate complicated vital sign information into terms that are understandable to the patient and the family.

High Demand for Telemetry Nurses

The prospects for new telemetry nurse job opportunities are very good: the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects the job growth for nurses to be 22 percent in the years between 2008 to 2018. The high rate of advancement in new diagnostic technology requires trained telemetry nurses to operate the machinery. As new the field of diagnostics grows, so does the demand for telemetry nurses.