The demand for quality healthcare is growing. Doctors and nurses can’t be trained to keep up. Patient care techs learn about things like dementia which can be especially helpful in nursing homes. When working with the elderly, professionals need specialized skills. Above all else, compassion and understanding are crucial as you’ll find with any area of the medical industry.
Patient care techs learn other skills including CPR and phlebotomy. Taking test samples and providing support to other medical professionals is key. The good news is patient care technician school graduates can choose markets at any time. You can also get off the ground in areas you might not expect.
What Kind of Options Do You Have after Patient Care Technician School?
What kind of options do you have with the right training and certification? Some patient care techs explore further training to become medical assistants, nurses, or even doctors. What kind of career options do you have with patient care tech training alone?
- Nursing Homes/Care Facilities: Both nursing homes and rehab facilities provide patients with long-term care. Many patients need help with basic tasks including bathing, eating, and getting to appointments. A patient care technician can provide the support patients in all these respects. In many facilities, patient care techs ensure a higher level of care while preventing nursing home neglect.
- Wound Clinics: Wound care clinics across the country are looking for qualified professionals. From burns to diabetes-related wounds, patients need professionals who can help. It’s not always complicated. Sometimes, it’s as simple as properly cleaning the wounds and changing the dressing. Professionals also have to be able to recognize signs of infections, dead cells, and more.
- Hospice Care: Most of the people you’ll care for in hospice care are older. Medical professionals have to be compassionate towards people of all types. Providing the right medications to ease pain and increase comfort is essential. Patient care techs can help with everyday tasks and monitor many aspects of the patient’s condition.
- Specialist Offices: Many specialists need as many people to run an office as possible. From gynecologists to dermatologists, specialists can assign a range of tasks. With the right attitude, patient care techs can rapidly expand their options and take on more responsibilities. This allows them to grow where they want to be.
- Emergency Organizations: You might think of doctors and nurses in an emergency room. They provide critical care. You also have many others who keep the system running. Patient care techs and medical assistants can help get patients checked in and processed. Patient care techs can also help doctors take testing samples and more.
- Hospitals: Just like you’d expect in nursing homes, hospitals have some residents. If they require a longer recovery, patients will eventually go to a nursing or rehab facility. Many patients undergoing surgical procedures require the same kind of care. Patient care techs can substantially improve a patient’s experience.
- Home Healthcare Providers: Many patients with conditions like cerebral palsy don’t want to live in assisted living facilities. This is where home healthcare companies come in. Sometimes, individuals and their families will look for an independent nurse or other medical professionals. You can apply through different ads they post. Many go through established companies that specialize in comprehensive home health care.
Find a Career You’ll Love in Patient Care Technician School
Eventually, some people go on to help others become patient care technicians. Some seek out extra training to become medical assistants, nurses, and more. For a growing number of students, a career as a patient care tech can be extremely fulfilling. You get plenty of opportunities to help others every day. It’s easy to find fulfillment with a career as a patient care tech.
Unlike other medical professionals, you don’t have to spend years in school. Patient care techs enjoy stable income and increasing demand. Eager professionals can train in just months. Once you graduate, you don’t need internships or externships to get your first job. Some students complete them during school. For more information on patient care technician school and the ways, FVI School of Nursing and Technology can help you, click here.