Every single year there are roughly 15.8 million flights around the country with nearly 5,000 aircraft in the sky simultaneously at peak times. To put it simply, air travel has become an integral part of our society, and if you want to get anywhere efficiently, you have to travel down that boarding ramp and take to the skies.
For some people, it simply isn’t that easy, however. Chronic illness or injury can make flight very difficult, but that does not negate the need to travel. This is where a qualified flight nurse will come into play.
What is a Flight Nurse?
A critical care flight nurse represents just one of the many career paths that a registered nurse can take, but they typically must be more of a generalist than a specialist. They need to be able to render an all-encompassing regiment of care including:
- Critical Care
- Emergency Care
- Pre-Hospital Care
These areas of care must be provided on a jet aircraft, propeller, or even a helicopter, making them a particularly difficult prospect for yet the best and most skilled of registered nurses.
What Does a Flight Nurse Do?
A flight nurse has many responsibilities, though primarily they are there to provide both nursing care and management They work for all types of patients, and before the flight they will work on both preparation and planning to ensure that the journey is as comfortable as humanly possible.
Safety and Comfort are Key
For all types of patients that a critical flight nurse administers care to, they are charged with also ensuring safety and comfort. The needs of each patient must be evaluated by the nurse so that the proper equipment can be provided, and then, the right care will be administered throughout the flight up until the destination is finally reached.
A critical care flight nurse is an important part of travel for senior citizens or those who suffer from chronic pain. There are dozens of other reasons for which someone might need an in-flight nurse, and the most important thing is that the nurse can do their job, ensuring that the patient lands safely at their destination whether they are going home, to a hotel, or a care facility.
