2026 Career Planning Guide
NURSING SPECIALITIES KEY: n Minimum Education required n Certifications required n Experience needed n Certification credential n Possible employment n Professional Organization n References / Resources
Ambulatory Care Nurse
A specialty often dealing with outpatients and practiced out of varying venues, including health clinics, physicians’ offices, urgent care centers, and even patient homes. Nurses are generally responsible for directing and managing a patient’ s overall treatment and also dealing with telehealth consultations.
n RN, BSN, or ASN / ADN( BSN or MSN encouraged) n Ambulatory Care Nursing Certification
n 2 years as a full-time RN; for certification: 2,000 hours clinical / practice in ambulatory care and / or telehealth nurs within the last 3 years; 30 hrs of CE in ambulatory care and / or telehealth nursing in the last 3 years.
n RN-BC
n Ambulatory care centers, outpatient surgery centers, home healthcare, physician offices, military service, schools, retail clinics, correctional facilities, community health settings n American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing( www. aaacn. org)
Air and Transport Nurse
A fast-paced environment that requires experienced nurses to make critical care decisions quickly, under often-chaotic cir- cumstances, and requires knowledge of a diverse range of clients and corresponding age-apropriate trauma and emer- gency care.
n BSN, or ASN / ADN n Certified Transport Registered Nurse or Certified Flight Registered Nurse certifications n 2 years recommended, but not required n CTRN or CFRN with recommended certifications: Paramedic certification, BLS, ACLS, NRP, TNCC, PALS n Hospitals, disaster teams, private companies, airlines, or the military n Air and Surface Transport Nurses Association( http:// astna. org)
Care Coordination and Transition Management n RN, ASN / ADN, BSN( MSN Preferred)
n For certification: RN license; 2 years of RN experience in a care coordination and transition management role; 2,000 hours of RN practice in care coordination and transition management within the last 3 years. n CCCTM
n Hospitals( continuing care settings); ambulatory care centers; medical / physician’ s offices; military service; community health settings; schools, Veterans Affairs n American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing( www. aaacn. org)
Chief Nursing Officer – see“ Nurse Executive” Clinical Nurse Leader – see“ Nurse Executive”
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