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Medical Technician Skills Needed STAT

Medical Technician Skills Needed STAT By Alan Drummer
alan.drummer@hqeducation.com
HQ Education Columnist
December 27, 2004

As America's population gets older, medical science can help them live longer - IF it's accessible. Leading the way in delivering health services are medical technicians - much in demand. Here are three top med tech opportunities.

Emergency Medical Technician

As an Emergency Medical Technician you could make a life-or-death difference on any given day. You're the first responder to incidents like heart attacks, auto accidents, childbirth, strokes and gunshot wounds.

The sick or injured are in your hands while they get transported to a medical facility. EMT's are in need, and it's possible to get an EMT degree in just one year.

Home Health Aide

As a home health aide, elderly, convalescent, or disabled persons turn to you to help them recover their greatest gift - their health - while they keep their freedom and self respect. That's because your work helps them live at home instead of having to stay in a health facility.

Your overall direction comes from a nurse or medical staff, but you are who people count on for health-related services like administering oral medications; taking pulse rates, temperatures and respiration rates; and helping with simple prescribed exercises.

You'll also keep patients' rooms neat and help them bathe, move from bed, dress, and groom. In many cases, you'll feel their appreciation every day.

Medical Technician or Medical Laboratory Technician

As a medical technologist or laboratory technician, the health industry counts on you to perform an ever-growing range of laboratory tests, from a simple blood test to the complex battery of tests used to diagnose diseases such as cancer.

In a Typical Week as a Medical Technician You Might:

  • Analyze the chemical content of fluids
  • Match blood for transfusions
  • Test for drug levels in the blood to show how a patient is responding to treatment
  • Look for abnormal cells
  • Look for bacteria, parasites, and other microorganisms
  • Prepare specimens for examination
  • Use automated equipment and instruments capable of performing a number of tests simultaneously

See how a medical technician degree can prepare you for needed jobs like these. Hq|education provides you with some top-notch schools that will train you to be a medical technician. Explore our programs, today!

Sources

  • Occupational Outlook Handbook: Medical Records and Health Information Technician. <stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos103.htm>
  • Emergency Med Tech. <stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos101.htm>
  • American Medical Technologists. <www.amt1.com/site/epage/15307_315.htm>

About the Author

Alan Drummer is a writer and video producer based in Burlingame, California. His specialties include outdoor adventure, travel, technology and advertising and marketing. Trained as an ad agency copywriter, his TV spots for children won some of the industry's major awards. His features have appeared in publications such as Better Homes and Gardens, the Los Angeles Times and San Francisco Magazine, and online at playstation.com.


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