EKG Technician

Advocate Health Care; Park Ridge (IL); On-site; USD 38,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

Advocate Health Care is seeking an EKG Technician to perform routine and STAT ECG procedures, identify patients, and support data entry. The role rotates to the Emergency Department and requires strong teamwork and documentation skills.

You will also assist with clerical duties and participate in safety training and department meetings. The position emphasizes patient privacy, accurate data handling, and timely communication with care teams.

Qualifications

• HS Grad, GED, or equivalent experience.
• Ability to work well with others and maintain patient privacy.
• Experience in hospital settings and basic clerical duties.
• Willingness to participate in ongoing education and safety training.
• Ability to perform routine ECG procedures and data entry.

Responsibilities

• Perform routine and STAT ECG requests and identify patients accurately.
• Rotate to Emergency Department as scheduled and manage ECG data entry.
• Enter and edit data in ECG machine and prepare records for interpretation.
• Support clerical functions for billing, documentation and communication.
• Participate in department meetings, inservices and safety training.

Skills

Teamwork

Time management

Communication skills

Attention to detail

Patient interaction

Education

High School Diploma or GED

Tools

ECG machine

Medical records systems

Job description

Major Responsibilities

Responsible for performing routine and STAT request for ECG procedures

• Identifies patient correctly and obtains relevant patient history.
• Responds to STAT requests, code blue, outpatient requests and inpatient routine requests in a timely manner.

Major Responsibilities

Responsible for performing routine and STAT request for ECG procedures

• Identifies patient correctly and obtains relevant patient history.
• Responds to STAT requests, code blue, outpatient requests and inpatient routine requests in a timely manner.

Rotates to the Emergency Department according to schedule.

• Able to enter/edit data entered in ECG machine before transmission of data to mainframe
• Performs Holter Monitor applications/removals, including preparing the holter for application, properly prepping the patient for good contact and a quality study and returning the monitor to the Heart Station upon removal
• Prepares patient for procedure, respects patient's privacy in an empathetic & gentle manner
• Able to troubleshoot problems associated with performing ECG's and rhythm strips, i.e., calming anxious patients, distracting pediatric patients
• Provide, receive and seek out shift-to-shift updates, including a review of the ECG carts, orders, outstanding ECG's, ECG's transmitted but not yet reconciled/assigned to an inbox and equipment status.

Follow-up on identified issues and communicate to next shift as appropriate.

• Facilitates the timely completion of ECG's on floors or departments with NCT's or RN's trained to perform.

Provides clerical functions necessary for physician interpretation & confirmation, department record-keeping & patient billing

• Maintains printers, department equipment and supplies; able to change cartridges or initiate call to obtain service for all printers and equipment.

Communicates to secretary with supply orders before depletion

• Insures that appropriate procedure has been ordered and reconciled
• Collects all information for the interpreting physician & prepares the study to be read within 2 hours of completion
• Properly distributes all studies to cardiologists for review and interpretation

Participation in professional development & process improvement teams by attending inservices, meetings & continuing education programs appropriate to the goals & needs of the department

• Attends & participates in department meetings
• Attends department inservice programs to insure technical competence
• Completes annual mandatory safety and infection control requirements by given deadline
• Maintains BLS requirements
• Reads and responds to Advocate and LGH email on a consistent basis, in a timely manner
• Actively demonstrates all customer service initiatives, including AIDET, on a consistent basis
• Works as a team member with the floor staff and fellow EKG technicians in the completion of all ordered ECG's

Provides training assistance to associates and physicians

• Provides education & troubleshooting assistance
• Assists with the training of new associates to the EKG department
• Mentors NCT's/new EKG techs/RN's and provides education and hands‑on experience to perform necessary supervised ECG's to complete training

Maintains a safe, organized & efficient work environment

• Complies with safety standards & infection control practices
• Reports equipment malfunction immediately to clinical engineering, operational problems & inventory depletion immediately to Heart Station leadership
• Maintains the cleanliness of the department & equipment
• Maintains the functioning of the EKG department phones and pagers
• Insures all phones and pagers are answered/calls forwarded appropriately Education/Experience Required: HS Grad, GED, or equivalent experience.

1-2 years hospital related experience or CNA or EMT

This position will need to recognize the needs & behaviors of a variety of age groups treated i.e., understand child growth & development, normal patterns of adolescent behavior & look for signs of normal aging; prior experience with various age groups is preferred

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities Required:

Ability to work well with others

Good organizational skills

Good time management

Good documentation/record keeping skills

Good communication skills BCLS

Physical Requirements And Working Conditions

• Ability to work weekends, holidays and STAT for call-ins in order to accommodate staffing needs
• Ability to perform a medium amount of lifting & transferring related to patient care (i.e., lifting up to 20-50 lbs occasionally)
• Exposure to ill/trauma patients, may be exposed to blood & urine samples
• Ability to transcribe medical information
• Ability to push equipment (i.e., ECG machine)
• Ability to communicate with patients
• Ability to stand and walk for extended periods of time
• If position has direct patient care or direct patient contact the following lifting requirement supersedes any previous lifting requirement effective 06/01/2015.
• Ability to lift up to 35 pounds without assistance. For patient lifts of over 35 pounds, or when patient is unable to assist with the lift, patient handling equipment is expected to be used, with at least one other associate, when available. Unique patient lifting/movement situations will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

This job description indicates the general nature and level of work expected of the incumbent. It is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities required of the incumbent. Incumbent may be required to perform other related duties.