Critical Care Nursing Officer

Overview

As a member of the military, Critical Care Nursing Officers provide care in the critical care domain of practice to ill and injured Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members and supported populations in in-patient care and medical evacuation environments while on operation. They are specialized in intensive care, emergency room and trauma resuscitation.

Critical Care Nursing Officers usualy work in civilian hospitals, Aeromedical Evacuation units, Operational CAF units, training and education establishments, and Headquarters. The work schedule may vary from shift work to a regular 40-hour work week, depending on the environment. Critical Care Nursing Officers are called to contribute to exercises, medical evacuation flights, and domestic or international emergencies.

During field exercises and deployments to military operations abroad, Critical Care Nursing Officers live and work in the same environment as the CAF members they treat.

If you chose a career in the Regular Force, upon completion of all required training, you will be assigned to your first base. While there is some flexibility with regards to postings (relocations), accommodations can’t always be made, and therefore, you can likely expect to move at some point in your career. However, if you decide to join the Primary Reserve Force, you will do so through a specific Reserve unit.

Outside of training, your chosen Reserve unit will be your workplace on a part time basis, and you will not be obligated to relocate to a different base. As part of the Primary Reserve Force, you typically work one night per week and some weekends as a minimum with possibilities of full-time employment.

• Direct Entry Options

In-Service Selection

Nursing Officers who joined the occupation through any entry plan have the opportunity, upon selection, to further specialize as a Critical Care Nursing Officer and progress in jobs, domains of practice and ranks of increasing responsibility.

If you already have a university degree and license to practice as a Registered Nurse in a Canadian province or territory and civilian nursing experience in a critical care environment, the CAF may place you directly into a Critical Care Nursing Officer job after evaluation of your experience. You may have to complete some education and certification to complement your civilian experience.

After completing the Rank Qualification Lieutenant training, Nursing Officers selected for specialization or who have civilian experience within a critical care environment are required to complete a formal critical care nursing course and a certification to ensure they have the clinical competencies required to deliver nursing care in a critical care setting. The certification is completed in a Canadian civilian tertiary care facility through completion of a designated curriculum.

The course completion and length of the certification depends on each Nursing Officer’s level of previous clinical experience.

Critical Care Nursing Officer may be offered the opportunity to develop specialized skills through formal courses and certification, including:

• Critical Care Aeromedical Evacuation Specialist;
• Strategic Tactical & Forward Aeromedical Evacuation;
• Mobile Surgical Resuscitation Team;
• Canadian Medical Emergency Response Team;
• Certified Clinical Anesthesia Assistant;
• Nurse Practitioner; and
• Special Forces support.

As members of the military, Critical Care Nursing Officer–Certified Clinical Anesthesia Assistants (CCNO-AAs) provide advanced nursing and anesthesia support to ill and injured Canadian Armed Forces members and supported populations in acute, complex, and remote environments. They are critical care nurses who have completed additional education and certification in anesthesia assistance and are employed under the supervision and medical direction of an anesthetist.

CCNO-AAs contribute to the delivery of anesthesia care across the perioperative continuum in support of surgery, trauma resuscitation, procedural sedation, and critical care. Their role enhances the capacity, flexibility, and resilience of anesthesia services in operational and clinical…