ER CNAs

Maverick80 · Sep 21, 2006

I am a Tech in the ER. I'm in nursing school, and all i had to have to get the job was my first clinical, at a 4 year accredited university. I got a job at local ED level 1 trauma center (Which means you can handle the most serious case traumas)about 2 months ago. I don't have a CNA, but first year of nursing school i learned all of that stuff and some. The things that i do at my ED are EKG's, Foley's/straight caths, Blood draws/cultures, assist with traumas, send urine to the lab, transport patients to the floors if they are admitted, clean beds/make beds, in charge of the ortho closet (make sure it's stocked if working in Minor emergency treatment), vitals, bed pans/urinals. That's the basics. I love it so far!! Good luck and let us know how it goes.

neneRN, BSN, RN · Sep 22, 2006

Techs in our ER do VS, EKGs, foleys, blood draws, splints, pt transports. They don't work with critical pts or traumas unless we need another set of hands for CPR.

Jennifer, RN · Sep 23, 2006

CNAs and Techs in my ED are different. We have 2 types of CNA: a traditional CNA and a PCA. A CNA can take vitals, splint, feed pts, bath pts, walk pts, etc.... A PCA can do blood draws, EKGs, insert foleys and all the things a CNA can do. A tech is short for EMT. They can do all the things a CNA and a PCA can do, but they also start IVs.

NewEDRN · Sep 23, 2006

We also have both CNA's and techs in my ED. The CNA's do stuff like vitals, can do pt transports, unfortunately for our CNA's, the majority of their time is spent doing 1 on 1's, we are the only psych screening and inpatient unit in the county, so we get tons of intoxicated, od's and psych pts. Our techs can do transports, vitals, 12 leads, direct stick labs, all the ortho splinting and teaching, dressings, suture set ups, take out iv's, can do discharge instructions for non complicated pts, they do not do any iv's, foleys, anything considered a skilled nursing duty.

98.6 · Sep 23, 2006

Hello
I've completed all my prereqs for nursing school, including my CNA course. I'll most likely start NS in the fall of 2007. So, i've decided to apply for some aide jobs. The one that interests me, is a night position in the ER (level 1; what is a level 1?).
I had my clinical in a nursing home (alzheimer's unit); which consisted mostly of lifting toileting and showering.
My question...What duties does a ER cna perform?
Thanks in advance

Go to the E.D.!

You will see a great spectrum of health care all meeting head on.

"Level One", is an accreditation bestowed by the American College of Surgeons. Basically, it means an E.D. can "handle" specific types of surgical emergencies. Having certain Surgeons/Specialists either in-house or within a specific on-call distance away.

sunshineonleith · Sep 26, 2006

i have an interview this morning to be an ED tech. I feel grossly underqualified and feel like a faker, but hey, the nurse manager of the unit must have known what she was doing if she read my resume and then decided to schedule an interview, right? Wish me luck - this job would really help out with my learning and school expenses!

Maverick80 · Sep 26, 2006

i have an interview this morning to be an ED tech. I feel grossly underqualified and feel like a faker, but hey, the nurse manager of the unit must have known what she was doing if she read my resume and then decided to schedule an interview, right? Wish me luck - this job would really help out with my learning and school expenses!

Good luck you'll do just fine. It will take a little adjusting, because the ER is such a busy and crazy place. It will do wonders for your knowledge base!!! let us know how it goes!!

sunshineonleith · Sep 26, 2006

thanks for the well wishes :) the interview went well, and she said HR just has to check my references and i'll be in for training. i'm so excited!

Maverick80 · Sep 27, 2006

congrats on the interview going well! you'll love it, just give yourself time to adjust!! Just curious how many hours of orientation do they give you?

sunshineonleith · Sep 27, 2006

you know, i'm not sure. if i wasn't a student, she said two weeks full time orientation at least. because i am a student, and because i have previous experience in some of the training sections (setting up a sterile field, etc) i will only train as my schedule fits. i have no idea how many hours it will take.

asbigham · Sep 27, 2006

I am an EMT and work in the ER. Its pretty busy all the time and there have been days I have gone on 13 hrs with maybe only enough time to get some water and go to the bathroom a few times. You will be on your feet the entire time. In our ER most of what we do is: Make sure everything is stocked (trauma rooms, airway boxes, crash carts... etc.), take vitals, insert foleys, wound care, splinting, removes stitches/staples, DC IVs, run codes, EKGs, transport Pts., collect fluids for labwork and assist Dr's with certian procedures (suturing, pelvics and that sort of stuff) and we also are trained to do some of the more simple blood and lab procedures. The ER is an exciting place, you learn alot, get to see alot and can do alot more than anywhere else in the hospital as a tech. The first time you run a trauma or code is the most exciting. Its not for everyone but when i finish nursing school I want to work in the ER.