Do nurses learn how to read EKG's and do phlebotomy?

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Hi All,

I just had a question, I'am currently an EMT-B looking for a hospital job in northern VA. No luck so far, I'm wondering if I should take a EKG tech program or Phlebotomy tech program to better my chances as well as give me a head start on my career in nursing. I'am currently trying to get into a nursing program, do nurses learn the previous mentioned skills or would i be better off spending the money to get certified now? Any advice u can give me is much appreciated.

Thanks,

Tammi

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Yes on both accounts however, with the single exception of an ACLS card for certain positions, certification for either is not necessary for an RN.

Pursue these courses if they would in fact better your chances for a tech position, but not as a nursing school prerequisite.

Good luck!

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My school taught EKG interpretation, but not phlebotomy. They said it was a skill we would acquire on the job.

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Thanks, I would in fact like to take both but I can only take one at the moment. I'm wondering which one I should take that the hospital would want more. Unless they would plan on hiring me just as a EMT and then training me.

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Re: phlebotomy - my nursing program doesn't teach it because according to the professors it depends what hospital you end up working in. We have 5 hospitals within a 15- 20 mile radius and most have a "blood team" that apparently does all of that. The instructors said it could also be an insurance/liability factor.

We do have a phlebotomy course but the nursing department discourages us from taking it. I never asked why and it's not like we have the time to add another course load anyways.

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Specializes in PICU; NICU.

We learned both while I was in nursing school. However, I think you would have a pretty easy time getting a tech position in the Emergency Department, if that is an area that interests you. While in my last quarter of nursing school, I was in the ED and all the techs there were EMTs.

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thanks, I'm still hoping to get a call back. I may do the EKG tech program...but I'm not sure if it will help me in landing a hospital job or not, just not sure if I want to spend $1200 on it. Perhaps if I was a NREMT I would get a call back lol

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I wouldn't say a simple EKG course was worth $1,200. Geez.

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Yea its a bit much...it's being offered through the community college nearby as a continuing education course. I might as well just keep trying to get a job as a tech with my EMT-B cert instead of spending all the money on the other certs.

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Re: phlebotomy - my nursing program doesn't teach it because according to the professors it depends what hospital you end up working in. We have 5 hospitals within a 15- 20 mile radius and most have a "blood team" that apparently does all of that. The instructors said it could also be an insurance/liability factor.

I'd say it depends on which department you work in rather than which hospital. Even if you have a blood team, if you end up working in the ED or ICU, there will be times when you can't wait for the blood team to get there. I don't think I'd spend that kind of money to learn phlebotomy in a separate course, but if you think you might work in those two departments, you should make sure you use learn it somehow.

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We do learn ekg's and phlebotomy, however this is a part that seems to give a lot of new grads heart burn. So i think it would be benificial to get certified in phlebotomy and ekg interpretation

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Specializes in TELEMETRY.

I was a LVN before I was a RN, so I had to get IV and phlebotomy certified. In RN school we didn't learn phlebotomy only IV start. We touched very little on EKG in RN school. I had to take a class.

My Advice: TAKE THE CLASSES, It won't hurt and you will have one up on all the nursing students and be prepared for that section of nursing school.

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