PCU / Stepdown
Cardiac PCU – Night Shift
Assignment Overview
- Shift: 7:00 PM – 7:00 AM, 3 × 12-hour shifts, 36 hours/week
- Duration: 13 weeks
- Start: Every Monday
- Scrubs: Navy blue
- Uniforms: Scrubs required
Unit & Patient Population
You'll work in a high-acuity, cardiac-focused progressive care unit managing patients with heart failure, atrial fibrillation, arrhythmias, chest pain, post-procedural cardiac cases, and transplant/LVAD patients. Expect frequent admissions and discharges with significant procedural volume.
Nurse-to-Patient Ratio
Required Experience & Skills
- Minimum 18 months recent cardiac unit experience
- Must independently interpret cardiac rhythms and pass a dysrhythmia exam on the first attempt (paper-based, proctored, using calipers — no remediation allowed)
- Proficiency with common cardiac drips: insulin, milrinone, dobutamine, amiodarone, heparin, Lasix, nitroglycerin
- Telemetry interpretation and chest tube management
- "4" rating on all cardiac skills per facility competency checklist
Common Procedures
Right/left heart catheterizations, sheath and TR band management, stent placement, valve replacements, STEMI/NSTEMI care, pacemakers, ICDs, cardioversions, ablations, and groin site management.
Preferred Experience
Heart transplant and LVAD experience (training provided if needed).
Float Expectations
May float to similar cardiac/PCU units. No float to cardiac monitor tech roles.
Location
Atlanta, GA — 50-mile radius, no local travelers.