RN ICU

Job Description

Job Description

RN ICU
Location: Des Moines, Iowa
Pay Rate: $57.62 – $59.62 per hour
Position Overview
Our client, an established healthcare organization, is seeking a skilled Intensive Care Unit Registered Nurse for an onsite, 90-day contract engagement in Des Moines, Iowa. This position supports a critical care unit caring for medically complex, hemodynamically unstable patients who require continuous assessment and rapid clinical decision-making.
This is a strong fit for a critical care nurse who wants substantive, high-acuity work in a collaborative unit. Whether you are between permanent roles or an employed nurse looking to broaden your experience across health systems, this contract offers meaningful clinical challenge and a clearly defined commitment.
Key Responsibilities
You will manage a critical care assignment, performing comprehensive head-to-toe assessments, monitoring hemodynamic status continuously, and adjusting the plan of care in response to changing patient condition. You will interpret cardiac rhythms, arterial and central venous pressures, and other invasive monitoring data, escalating concerns to the intensivist team promptly.
Medication management is a core function. You will titrate vasoactive drips, sedation, and analgesia according to protocol and patient response, administer high-alert medications with appropriate verification, and monitor for adverse effects and drug interactions in patients with complex physiology.
You will care for mechanically ventilated patients in collaboration with respiratory therapy, manage airways and artificial airways safely, and support weaning and extubation efforts. You will also manage central lines, arterial lines, chest tubes, drains, and continuous renal replacement therapy where applicable, maintaining strict infection prevention practice throughout.
You will participate in multidisciplinary rounds, respond to codes and rapid response events, and document assessments, interventions, and outcomes accurately in the electronic health record. Communication with patients' families during difficult periods, including goals-of-care discussions led by the medical team, is an important part of the role.
You will contribute to unit safety and quality practice, including adherence to bundles for ventilator-associated events, central line infections, and catheter-associated infections, and you will participate in early mobility, delirium screening, and sedation minimization initiatives. Accurate intake and output tracking, wound and skin assessment, and pressure injury prevention are ongoing daily accountabilities across every assignment.
Requirements
An active, unrestricted Registered Nurse license valid in Iowa is required, including multistate compact licenses that permit Iowa practice. Current BLS and ACLS certifications are required at the time of hire.
You must have prior intensive care experience in an adult ICU setting, with demonstrated competency in ventilator management, vasoactive drip titration, and invasive hemodynamic monitoring. Confident cardiac rhythm interpretation is essential.
Excellent clinical judgment, the ability to prioritize rapidly among competing demands, and composure during emergent situations are mandatory. You must be able to work full onsite shifts, document proficiently in an electronic health record, and collaborate effectively with physicians, respiratory therapists, pharmacists, and nursing colleagues.
Preferred Qualifications
CCRN certification is strongly preferred. Experience in a medical, surgical, cardiovascular, or mixed ICU at a larger facility is valued, as is exposure to continuous renal replacement therapy, therapeutic hypothermia, or mechanical circulatory support.
A Bachelor of Science in Nursing and prior contract or travel nursing experience are advantageous. Candidates with charge nurse, preceptor, or rapid response team experience will be well positioned for this assignment.
Familiarity with Epic or a comparable electronic health record is helpful in reducing orientation time. Willingness to work night shift or rotating schedules, flexibility to float to step-down or progressive care when census requires, and experience in a teaching hospital environment are all viewed favorably.
Compensation and Benefits
The hourly pay range for this engagement is $57.62 to $59.62, based on experience and certifications held. The assignment runs as a 90-day contract with a defined end date.
You will work within a critical care team that values clinical rigor and mutual support, and you will gain experience with a different health system's protocols, technology, and patient population. The defined contract length allows you to plan around the commitment, and extension may be available subject to performance and continued need.
This is a contract engagement placed through our recruiting team. We work closely with our contract professionals throughout the assignment, from onboarding and first-week check-ins through to end-of-contract planning, and we actively look for the next opportunity for people who deliver well. Many of our contract placements lead to extensions, repeat assignments, or permanent conversion.
We are an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Reasonable accommodations are available during the application and interview process on request. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States for the duration of the engagement.