fellow nurse techs

[Ginyer]

I was just offered a job as a nurse tech in PACU yesterday so I'm pretty excited. They told me that since I'm in recovery and the patients are sleeping I'll get to utilize a lot more of my skills in this department. He said I'll start IV's, hang fluids, catheters, and assessments. No bed baths which is nice. He said I'll be observed by the nurse when I start IV's and put in catheters etc. the first few times I do it.

Anyway I was curious as to what kind of skills everyone else is able to perform as nurse techs. I thought all nurse techs were able to do those things in every department...he may have just been saying that to sell the job. I'm not really sure. After two clinical semesters I still haven't had a chance to start an IV or put in a catheter so hopefully I'll get that opportunity at this job. My schedule is every weekend 7am to 7pm and I'm in class mon thru wed, and clinicals are thursdays and fridays so it'll be rough not having even one day a week with no work or school. Hopefully I don't burn out. I've been working every other weekend and four days a week at the job I'm at now. Guess I'll find out soon enough how I handle it.

Anyway now I'm just rambling. I hope I enjoy this job, hope it's worth it as I'm also taking a cut in pay. Also I was wondering what those of you that are nurse techs get paid an hour if you don't mind. They're paying me 8.50 plus a weekend and shift time differential after 3:00. So I'll find next week how much of an increase that makes.

Ok sorry such a long post.

Thanks :)

Ginyer

[bbcewalters, NP]

Wow, there must be quite a variance from state to state on what is within a tech's scope of practice. But here's something I'm curious about... in my skills text for nursing school I remember that anything that required sterile technique and assessment skills... ie foley insertion... was considered to be outside the scope of practice of a tech and something an RN could not delegate. And of course this book is used by students throughout the US. I'm just confused by the disparity.

Many hospitals allow techs to be certified/trained in specific things such as foley insertion, blood draw....this is done a lot in specialty areas such as ERs, ICUs, PACUs....the scope of practice for a tech is determined by their training.

[cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN]

Many hospitals allow techs to be certified/trained in specific things such as foley insertion, blood draw....this is done a lot in specialty areas such as ERs, ICUs, PACUs....the scope of practice for a tech is determined by their training.

I am not certified in anything (except in BLS). I am not even a CNA. The tech training is all OJT. There is only one hospital in my town that doesn't allow the techs to perform sterile technique. When I worked in L&D I was NRP certified-and we had to learn it all, but of course we couldn't give meds or intubate. We were allowed to perform CPR and bag the neonates until the NICU team arrived. I would also check the fundus and if it was mushy above the U then I would st cath/massage the mom and then chart it on the progress notes. I also had to set up the sterile table with all of the instruments. Maybe AZ is really liberal, but in the 3 hospitals that I have worked in over the years and the others that I have had clinicals in I have seen others and/or been able to do all of these things. They were thinking of requiring the techs where I work to get ACLS. I already have to take the EKG class yearly and they really want us to take the A-line monitoring class yearly, too.

[MIA-RN1, RN]

I work the floor and I can titrate O2 on pts, draw from A-lines, hemostase femoral sites, intrepret EKGs, insert foleys, draw blood, dressing changes, fingersticks, and do beds baths and vitals. Floor techs can do as much as ER techs can--legally.

I'm sorry, I wasn't clear that I meant floor techs where I work can't do many of the skills that the ER techs can do. I am all on the job trained as well. We can't legally titrate or start O2 here, as it is considered a medication per NY state.

Your job sounds awesome!

[Stewie]

Congratulations on the PACU job! I worked in PACU for almost 2 years as a CNA and I loved it. I wasn't allowed to do much, but the doctors and nurses were great about showing me new things so I would at least have an idea of what was going on. Now that I am almost finished with nursing school (5 months) I am considered a nurse tech. I work in a local emergency room and we insert/dc foley caths, draw blood, dc IV's, ekg's, splints, vitals, etc. No assessments or meds though. The only drawback I see to being a tech in the ER is that we are so busy the nurses don't really have time to show you things, so it's not as much of a learning experience as I would have liked. A word of advice for you - ANYTIME a procedure is being done that you aren't familiar with ask if you can watch or help. I know the nurses that I worked with liked it when I showed interest in new things. All they can do is say no, right? Good luck!!!

[dosamigos76, RN]

I work on the Surgical floor as a LPN (one more semester for my RN), and our tech's have just become eligible for tech II's. Tech II's can insert and removed IV's and foley's and doing fingersticks ......after training and certifying....IF and only IF the Nurse approves. When you have a good tech, it's wonderful, but gets sticky when you have a so-so and I won't have them do it for me...

Congrats on your job!!!

Chery