ADVICE PLEASE. Pct from Critical Care to ER

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I've accepted a job offer from a large hospital for a PCT position in a busy ER

I've worked as a PCT in ICU for the past 3 years....

Any advice for the transition? I loved working ICU because it was exciting and I learned so much working there but I only worked the ER in my old hospital a handful of times

any advice on the transition? I was/am pretty confident I'll do fine but I'm starting to psych myself out a bit!

thanks!!!

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Specializes in Critical Care, Capacity/Bed Management.

In the ER you are pretty much independent, sort of... If a chest pain comes via ambulance you are expected to do an EKG without a nurse telling you, a woman is complaining of abd pain you should get urine and do an HcG. When I worked as a PCT in an ER these were things that were expected of all techs... it is a very different mentality in the ER... oh and you will do CPR in codes, we do not page codes so usually its an ER doc, few nurses and 2 techs doing compressions... at least at my facility

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Thanks! I know it is a completely different environment which is why I'm psyching myself out a bit. Once I get there and get the flow of things I'm sure I'll do fine... I'm pretty good at doing things without being asked and using my common sense to know what has to be done, I thinks thats why I got along so well with the RN's in ICU....

As for the codes, I knew my role in ICU and since there were usually always residents around (it's a teaching hospital) I rarely did compression's on the unit. When they code while taking them to CT scan or another test off the unit on the other hand, I'd be doing compressions until the "team" got there. After that the compressions are usually left to the residents, or taller people (I'm barely 5ft tall and needed a stool to do compressions if the pt was in a ICU bed!)

I think I need to just mentally prepare myself for the insanity in-store... everyone I have asked has told me that the ER in this hospital is INSANELY busy... all the time. And while I like keeping busy at work I just hope I can keep up!

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