Oncology infusion nurse: role, training and how to get hired
Oncology infusion nurses give chemotherapy, immunotherapy and supportive infusions to people with cancer, usually in an outpatient cancer center or hospital infusion suite. Compared with general ambulatory infusion, the job adds hazardous-drug handling, more complex regimens and closer symptom management, and most employers require chemotherapy-specific training before you give chemo independently.
What the job involves
- Pre-treatment checks: reviewing labs, verifying orders, weight-based dosing and treatment parameters with the pharmacist and provider.
- Access: most oncology patients have implanted ports, so port access and care is daily work. See PICC vs. port.
- Administration: giving chemotherapy, immunotherapy and targeted therapies plus pre-meds, hydration and supportive infusions.
- Safe handling: personal protective equipment, closed-system devices and spill procedures for hazardous drugs.
- Monitoring: hypersensitivity and infusion reactions, extravasation risk with vesicants, and side effects between cycles.
- Education and support: what to expect, when to call, and a lot of emotional support for patients and families.
Training and certification
| Credential | What it is |
|---|---|
| ONS/ONCC® Chemotherapy Immunotherapy Certificate™ | An Oncology Nursing Society course that many employers require before you give chemo. It's a certificate of added qualification (renewed every 2 years), not a board certification. ONS suggests its Fundamentals course for nurses newer to oncology. |
| OCN® | Oncology Certified Nurse, a board certification from ONCC with its own experience requirements. Common in oncology roles, usually preferred rather than required. |
| CRNI® | The infusion specialty certification. Useful if you want to stay infusion-focused across settings. See our CRNI guide. |
How to move into oncology infusion
- Build IV and port skills in any IV-heavy role: oncology inpatient, med-surg, ED or general infusion.
- Get chemo training. Some employers sponsor the ONS/ONCC certificate after hire; others want it first. Check each posting.
- Learn the regimens your target center gives most, and how reactions are handled there.
- Tailor your resume to oncology language: hazardous drugs, ports, symptom management. See our infusion nurse resume guide.
Open oncology infusion jobs
InfusionJobs lists 64 oncology, chemo or hematology infusion roles right now. Browse infusion RN jobs and filter by your state, or search "oncology" on the jobs page.
Sources: Oncology Nursing Society, ONS/ONCC® Chemotherapy Immunotherapy Certificate™ and "Is there a chemotherapy certification?".
430 infusion jobs open right now
Including 215 infusion RN roles, pulled straight from employer careers pages every week.