Types of Nurses
In and Out of the Hospital

There are probably hundreds of types of nurses. Whatever you want to do, you can do it as a nurse. From working with hospice patients in their homes, to flying helicopters with the most critically ill, there is a place for everyone.

If you are a current nurse and want to tell us about your position please click here.

I have compiled a list of ideas for you about what types of nurses are out there. This page discusses hospital nursing positions. You can also see my pages on alternative nurse careers for those types of jobs nurses find outside the hospital setting or otherwise different than bedside nursing. Whenever you see a link on the list, it will lead you to a more detailed look at that type of nurse.

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Floor Nursing or Hospital (non-ICU) nursing

1. Cardiac Nurse—Deals with telemetry. Usually refers to cardiology type patients who are not having cardiac surgery.
2. Cardiothoracic Nurse—Heart and lung surgery patients in recovery.
3. General Medicine Nurse—All the sicknesses that can’t be classified into another specific floor such as cardiac.
4. Hemodialysis Nurse—The patients during their dialysis sessions. Can be in a hospital or private setting.
5. Labor and Delivery Nurse—You know what this is.
6. Med/Surg Nurse—General surgery patients. Usually abdomens and complicated wounds.
7. Neurology Nurse—Recovering strokes and brain injuries.
8. Nursery Nurse—Crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s for the healthy newborns.
9. Obstetrics/Women—All those problems men don’t want to think about.
10. Orthopedic Nurse—Bones Bones Bones! Especially hips and knees.
11. Oncology Nurse—Everything related to cancer patients.
12. Pediatric Nurse—Even sick children (don’t forget the parents!) need good nurses.
13. Psych Nurse—prepare to give a lot of meds.
14. Pulmonary Nurse—Seen in bigger hospitals mostly. For all non-surgical lung issues.

Critical Care Nursing

1. CCU or Cardiac Care Unit—For critical heart patients who have not had cardiac surgery on the current hospital stay.
2. Cardiothoracic ICU—Fresh post-op heart and lung patients including transplants.
3. Emergency Room—A fast paced day filled with a little bit of everything.
4. Flight Nursing—Transport of sick patients to larger hospitals and traumas. Usually no doctor is on board so the nurse is IT. Many times flight nurses work with the ground units too (ambulances for tansport)
5. General ICU—Sick but not surgical, at least not yet.
6. Neonatal ICU—Nurses for the sickest babies and premies.
7. Neuro ICU—Head traumas and major stroke patients
8. PACU or Post Anethesia Unit—post-op recovery for same-day surgery patients or general surgery patients that will not need an ICU following surgery.
9. Pediatric ICU—Nurses for the sickest kids.
10. Surgical ICU—Think general here. Trauma surgeries not involving the head, and general cases with complications.

All other Types of Nursing

1. Lactation Consultant—If you have never done it, you don't know how! That is where these lovely people step in and help you breastfeed.
2. Clincial Research Nurse—Help gather and analyze data for clinical trials. You will also help enroll patients in these trials.