How to get a job as a PCT

[mamayogibear]

Hello,

I would love to get a job as a PCT at a local hospital or one in a near by city as I really want to work in a hospital setting. I am currently enrolled in a CNA course that ends in March. How do I go about finding a job as a PCT? What do I need to do to stand out as a student and in the application pool?

How competitive is it to get a job as a PCT? Is a lot of experience needed?

Others in the class that I've spoken with thus far don't seem to know about PCTs and are either taking the course to get a job in a nursing home or because it is a prereq. I do not have any health care experience yer but I have completed prereqs to get into most of the BSN programs in my area. However I need a job asap and experience as well and becoming a PCT seems like the way to go!

Thanks for any advice

[turnforthenurse, MSN, NP]

melosaur, it sounds like they only want to hire potential nurses to be PCT.

That's why I said it depends on hospital :)

In my experience with the hospitals around here, PCT, PCA (patient care assistant), PCNA (patient care nursing assistant), "tech" and NT (nurse tech) have been used interchangeably with a few minor differences. I used to work as PCNA at another hospital before I became an NT, and that hospital also had PCT's. The only difference between the PCT & the PCNA was that the PCT could draw blood. That hospital also only wanted to hire nursing students as PCTs (and I feel like I got jipped, because I was a nursing student at that time lol)

[Charloth03]

I have 0 experience as a PCA or PCT, will just start working on my CNA and my nursing pre classes this semester. I started my first week at my first health care company, I applied for first time and got hired the same day, maybe because they were needing people so bad at the moment. I walked in and talked to the office supervisior about my desire of becoming a RN and working wt sick people, she just smiled at me and said she would get in touched with me, and luckily called me back the same day and gave me all the paperwork i guess i didnt have an interview. I started my training same day (working only 1 week ). I think the key is to show as much as enthusiasm and eagerness you got. Tell them that you have a huge passion for your career and you cannot wait to help sick people, thats what i did.

[northernguy]

If you cant find a job as a "pct" in a hospital then work as an aide in LTC to get some experience. Hospital and LTC differ obviously, and you will probably learn more in a hospital, but you can still learn a lot in LTC as well. Most of the residents are going to have numerous medical conditions, some will be on hospice care, you will gain practice ambulating, transferring and doing ADLs, taking vitals, bathing, repositioning, charting, all of which you would do in a hospital.

Some people seem to think because they are Nursing students they are above working in LTC, and if they cant work in a hospital they dont want to work as an aide. Thats a foolish mindset I think. I work in LTC and float at a hospital med/surge unit and have learned a lot doing both. LTC can be more challenging at first, at least until you get the routine down, but hard work never killed anybody.

[cscott123412]

Hi I live in Savannah Ga and here once we get our CNA license then we need to go through a program to get our PCT diploma at a technical college. We do have clinicals in fact I start mine in November our instructor has also informed us that it is common for the hospitals to offer the PCT students Permanent positions once we complete the program and graduate. On the other hand a couple years ago I worked at the hospital as a CNA and the hospital was going to send me back to school to get my PCT diploma unfortunately I had to quit that job because of complications with my pregnancy. Like many of you I am planning on working as a PCT while working towards my RN