Cover Story


require a grade of 100 percent before considering an application. After being hired, nurses get even


more training. For McCarty, that included a three-week flight academy and oral board exams. Flight nurses work under the license


Samantha McCarthy, a flight nurse for Air Evac Lifeteam, recently was awarded the National Flight Nurse of the Year by her company.


patients who wish to return home.


Training requirements | Being a flight nurse requires extensive training and certification. When McCarty applied to Air Evac Lifeteam, she had to have half a dozen specific certifications, such as ACLS and PALS, before her application even would be considered. The company also requires applicants to have at least three years of experience in a busy emergency department or ICU. Many companies require applicants to pass written tests and simulations. Some


of their medical directors, who are emergency-department physicians. They must be trained in skills that nurses don’t normally perform, such as inserting chest tubes, and often are required to practice those skills during in-service workshops. Airplane nurses also are trained


in flight physiology, focusing on the impact of altitude and cabin pressure on


Samantha


patients with certain conditions. Regardless of a nurse’s trauma


experience, flight nursing comes with its own set of challenges. Most companies partner new recruits with seasoned professionals who act as mentors. Although the hurdles to entry are high, flight nurses say the extra effort is worth it.


“My job satisfaction is amazing


because I love what I do,” McCarty said. “I love taking care of patients and using my knowledge to help someone in their time of need. We need to be the best part of their worst day, and I take pride in that, in helping someone at a difficult time.” ●


“My first flight was a patient who was having a


McCarty Air Evac Lifeteam


dissecting aneurysm, which means there is blood leaking into the body. The doctor said, ‘Take the patient and go. Be fast.’ I was scared to death and


was paralyzed with fear. “Once we got the patient safely dropped off in Indianapolis, I got back in


the helicopter, and thought, ‘I don’t even know if I can do this.’ It was so much stress. “A week later, the patient and his sister came to our base. He told us that the doctors


in Indianapolis said he wouldn’t be alive if not for us, and his sister made us cookies. That sealed the deal. That’s why I do what I do, because he’s here.”


IS-5875226 14 Indiana Nursing Quarterly • indystar.com/nursing • Fall 2011


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