Acute Care Nurses
Provide advanced nursing care for patients with acute conditions such as heart attacks, respiratory distress syndrome, or shock. May care for pre- and post-operative patients or perform advanced, invasive diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.
Also called: Acute Care Nurse, Admission Nurse, Admission Nurse Coordinator, Cardiac Interventional Care Nurse, Cardiovascular ICU Nurse (Cardiovascular Intense Care Unit Nurse), Cardiovascular Surgery Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (Cardiovascular Surgery ACNP)
Median pay
$97,550
Pay for the broader BLS group “Registered Nurses”
Pay range (10th–90th)
$68,940 – $137,470
People employed
3,379,720
Whole BLS group
Holland code
SIR
Social · Investigative · Realistic
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Is this career right for you?
These are the things that stand out in this job compared with other U.S. jobs (O*NET 31.0 work context). Answer honestly.
- 1.Do you want to stay at 40 hours a week or less?
- 2.Do you work well under tight deadlines?
- 3.Do you want to lead or coordinate other people’s work?
- 4.Do you prefer working indoors?
The hard parts
- Exposure to disease or infection
- Tight deadlines are common
- Mistakes can have serious consequences
Acute Care Nurses pay by state
Annual median pay by state (50 states and DC with published data). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025, for the broader group “Registered Nurses”.
What acute care nurses do
- 01Discuss illnesses and treatments with patients and family members.
- 02Diagnose acute or chronic conditions that could result in rapid physiological deterioration or life-threatening instability.
- 03Perform emergency medical procedures, such as basic cardiac life support (BLS), advanced cardiac life support (ACLS), and other condition-stabilizing interventions.
- 04Assess urgent and emergent health conditions, using both physiologically and technologically derived data.
- 05Adjust settings on patients' assistive devices, such as temporary pacemakers.
- 06Set up, operate, or monitor invasive equipment and devices, such as colostomy or tracheotomy equipment, mechanical ventilators, catheters, gastrointestinal tubes, and central lines.
Skills that matter most
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Writing
Knowledge
- Medicine and Dentistry
- Customer and Personal Service
- Education and Training
- English Language
- Psychology
Work styles that stand out
- Attention to Detail
- Integrity
- Cautiousness
- Cooperation
- Self-Control
Education and first steps
Share of workers by required education, as reported to O*NET.
How people get started
- Usually needs a bachelor's degree (O*NET Job Zone 4).
- Related work experience: none.
- On-the-job training: over 1 month, up to and including 3 months.
- A professional certification is often expected.
Most common answers from O*NET 31.0 Education, Training and Experience.
Interest fit (Holland code)
O*NET occupational interest scores, scale 1–7. Take the Free Career Test to compare with your own.
Career changes
Change from acute care nurses
- Paramedics87% · —
- Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses86% · —
- Nursing Assistants79% · —
- Psychiatric Technicians77% · —
- Physical Therapist Assistants76% · —
Change into acute care nurses
Jobs whose skills carry over best (skill match, their median pay).
- Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses87% · $64,400
- Midwives85% · $65,790
- Paramedics85% · $60,600
- Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary84% · $80,250
- Psychiatric Technicians82% · $45,130
Majors that lead here
- Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse
- Nursing Administration
- Adult Health Nurse/Nursing
- Family Practice Nurse/Nursing
- Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing
- Nursing Science
- Pediatric Nurse/Nursing
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing
- Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing
- Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing
- Clinical Nurse Specialist
- Critical Care Nursing
From the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk.