3 Top Training Programs to Help Fill EKG Tech Vacancies

When an organization needs to fill an EKG tech vacancy, there is competition for the best talent. Not only does the technician perform the EKG, but they have a responsibility to help a patient feel at ease, discern when there may be a medical emergency, and clearly communicate with staff and patients. Hiring directly from a career training program that teaches students all of these skills provides an ideal opportunity to hire great staff, motivated to learn and perform at their best.

MedCerts EKG Technician Career Training Program

The online program that MedCerts offers trains students in the knowledge they’ll need to become excellent EKG Techs.

Students who complete the program are prepared for both national certification tests for the Certified EKG Technician (CET) and for a Certified Customer Service Professional (CCSP). MedCerts believes that the EKG Tech needs to be prepared not just to hook a patient up to the machine and run it, but also to provide warm customer care and be a liaison between the patient and organization.

It is a combination of knowledge, skills, and empathy that makes a person an excellent EKG Technician. At MedCerts, students are taught:

• Medical Terminology and Disease Processes
• How to administer an excellent EKG test
• Communication skills
• Customer Service Training

The EKG Tech has an opportunity to make a great impression on the patient and provide compassion to them in a time when the patient is not feeling well and might be scared.

Additionally, the Customer Service Professional component of their training ensures that the technician will be trained in providing excellent communication to the patients and providers they work with.

MedCerts will work with your hiring team to help find the best candidates for your needs and match a motivated student who is excited to start their career as an EKG tech.

Community College Programs

There are many community colleges that provide training on becoming an EKG technician. A typical education in a community college certification program includes:

• Operating the EKG equipment
• Basic anatomy and physiology terminology
• A combination of class and lab work

Most community college training programs focus on getting students ready to take tests for healthcare certifications. Students exit the program ready to take that test, but may not always be ready to take on duties outside of the EKG, such as communicating with staff and patients, making patients feel at ease, and writing documentation.

Organizations often assume that hiring candidates from a local community college is a better choice; however, this belief limits choices for hiring. Depending on the area, there may be very few candidates available and the candidates are only as good as their instructors. On the other hand, a program like MedCerts has a more standardized curriculum, where students are taught the material in the best way to give students their best chance for success.

Students who have proven themselves motivated by enrolling and graduating from an online program are ready to enter the workforce year-round from MedCerts while community college students are available only at the end of a given term. Additionally, enrollment in community college training programs has dropped over time, while online programs, with their flexibility, are becoming more popular.

On the Job Training

Some smaller clinics and hospitals select their EKG Technicians from those already working in the clinic.

These people are generally not trained in the anatomy and physiology terminology required to pass a written exam for that healthcare certification. They do, however, know how to place the electrodes, run the machine and recognize a good EKG reading to pass on to the provider.

Hiring from within can be a great move for your clinic. In addition, MedCerts is available to provide exam prep courses to ensure that employees are ready to contribute to your patients’ experience in a time where they may be a bit apprehensive.

A shortage of good EKG staff can cause headaches for your clinic. Overworked staff are not as happy and can be prone to making mistakes. In addition, the overtime pay for those workers may stretch your budget.

The best way to avoid this is to hire great talent from programs that train and get students ready for certification.

Find out more about the EKG Technician Career Training program through MedCerts.

Sources:

• EKG Technician: What Can I Expect in This Job?
• CET Certified EKG Technician
• EKG Technician Interview Questions

When implementing a cross-training plan, you can't expect staff members to just pick up new skills from colleagues in other areas. Formal training is a must, particularly when employees need to develop new skills that are significantly different from their daily expertise.

Online career training programs provide formal instruction and allow students to progress at their own pace. In particular, MedCerts offers Medical Assistant programs that are conducted entirely online:

• Clinical Medical Assistant
• Clinical Medical Specialist
• Clinical Medical Professional

These programs prepare students for their certification exams without intruding on their work schedules.

At MedCerts, we offer three online Medical Assistant programs depending on what certifications students are interested in.

Cross-Training Alleviates Staffing Shortfalls

One of the most serious threats to health care today has nothing to do with the politics of medical insurance or the rising costs of medical care. Instead, the real problem is a simpler one: staffing shortages.

There's not always an adequate supply of qualified nurses and support staff to meet the growing medical needs of the country's population. Even when qualified candidates can be found to fill positions, more and more healthcare facilities find themselves adopting leaner staffing models in order to keep costs in check.

When you're operating with a lean staff, having just one or two employees call in sick can cause major issues. That's where cross-training comes into play, alleviating many of the risks of staffing shortages. Providing your medical assistants with the training needed to handle a wider range of duties results in a versatile staff where everyone can pitch in and help out as needed.

Cross-Training Provides Improved Career Pathways

Cross-training your medical assistants doesn't just offer advantages for your healthcare facility. It's also a win for your employees. An expanded skill set provides new opportunities for employees and sets them up for career advancement.

As a healthcare facility, you can reinforce your relationship with employees by providing the training and education they need to thrive. Cross-training should go hand-in-hand with career pathing—helping your employees chart out what their careers might look like over time. When you provide your staff with the opportunity to learn and take their career to the next level, you tend to hold on to quality employees and reduce overall churn.

Employee shortages can wreak havoc on your facility's daily operations, but it's not easy to find and recruit qualified staff members with the appropriate healthcare certifications. Cross-training your medical assistants to handle a wider variety of duties lets you build higher-quality staff and run your facility more efficiently.

For flexible, cost-effective training, consider MedCerts's Clinical Medical Assistant career training programs. Medical Assistant training with MedCerts combines online instruction with on-the-job experiential learning. This solution meets the needs of both students and employers.

Contact us for more about how MedCerts can benefit your healthcare facility and offer solutions to your staffing issues.