Patient Care Technicians are one of the most valued and important positions in the medical field. Patient Care Technicians (or PCT’s) work closely with patients and will spend a lot of time bedside within a hospital setting. You’ll work along with the nursing staff to perform a lot of behind -the -scenes duties including changing bandages, collecting fluids for laboratory testing, assisting with meals, preparing fresh bedding, and recording any changes in the patient’s well-being. You’ll report back to a nurse with any new symptoms the patient may be experiencing and generally provide a lot of hands-on attention to the patients you’re assigned to.
Patient Care Technician training
This particular certification, which is considered a higher level position, requires only 80 hours of classroom learning and 160 hours of externship. Prerequisites for this program in Arizona are to have completed at least one of the following: Certified Nursing Assistant, Clinical Medical Assistant, or EMT. Various skills that are a part of this program include, but are not limited to:
• Taking blood pressure and measuring vital signs
• Setting up dialysis or hemodialysis for patients
• Patient relations and helping to improve each individual’s hospital experience
• Relaying information on pain levels or changes in symptoms to RN
Patients will be looking to you for answers and conversing with you on a daily basis. You should demonstrate strong communication skills, patience, and compassion as you’ll be the primary liaison between the patient and the RN. Your accuracy and constant attention to details will ultimately be what gives the patient the care they need.
Summing it all up
While the medical field is diverse and large, those who make the effort to be outgoing, provide friendly bedside manner, and prioritize important tasks will be extremely valuable from a patient’s perspective. Nurses and doctors rarely have much time to focus on individual patients on a personal level which can ultimately mean the world to a patient. When you’re ready to take the next step in your medical training and gain a certificate or degree, looking into the PCT courses at Providence Training Institute may be just what the doctor ordered!
