going back to school need advice...

[mom2mojolo]

hi there!

i'm a newbie and lurker here. so much great info. i hope someone out there can help me...

i've been a stay at home mom to my disabled child for 10 years. i'm going back to school to update my skills and will be starting a unit coordinator class so i can work while going to school to study RN .

my question is as a unit coordinator would it be an added plus if i took a phlebotomy course and ekg class to make me more marketable when looking for a job in the hospital?

thanks!

mom2mojolo

[Jolie, BSN]

In my experience, unit coordinator (unit clerk) positions involve primarily clerical work such as initiating charts, entering orders into the computer, posting results on charts, maintaining communication between members of the healthcare team, answering phones, directing visitors, etc. They don't involve much actual contact with patients or hands-on care.

Patient Care Technicians (PCTs) assist the nursing staff in hands-on patient care, including bathing, feeding, ambulating patients, and performing certain skills such as finger stick blood draws. As a PCT, you may find an advantage to having phlebotomy and/or ekg skills, but I don't think many unit clerks would need or use these skills.

[mom2mojolo]

In my experience, unit coordinator (unit clerk) positions involve primarily clerical work such as initiating charts, entering orders into the computer, posting results on charts, maintaining communication between members of the healthcare team, answering phones, directing visitors, etc. They don't involve much actual contact with patients or hands-on care.

Patient Care Technicians (PCTs) assist the nursing staff in hands-on patient care, including bathing, feeding, ambulating patients, and performing certain skills such as finger stick blood draws. As a PCT, you may find an advantage to having phlebotomy and/or ekg skills, but I don't think many unit clerks would need or use these skills.

thanks so much for your input. PCTs sounds more like something i'd like to do how would i go about becoming a Patient care Tech?

[Jules A, MSN]

Would a PCT be the same as a CNA? Thats a certified nursing assistant and they do a lot of really important patient care tasks. Its a hard job and the pay isn't great but I would guess its probably similar to that of a unit clerk. In my LPN class we were able to just apply for our CNA license after our first semester.

I have a friend with a disabled child that I keep trying to talk into going back to school for nursing. She'd be a natural. I'll look forward to your updates. Jules