Celebrity deaths that are due to heart failure can wake people up to the seriousness of heart disease. That happened when actress Carrie Fisher and singer George Michael died of heart related issues late in 2016. Both were under 61 years of age, with George Michael being younger than 54. As reported in The Philadelphia Inquirer, there is more than one type of cardiac conditions. 1
What Happens During Cardiac Arrest and a Heart Attack
Cardiac arrest occurs when the heart stops suddenly. There is often no warning at the onset of cardiac arrest. A heart attack generally occurs after one or more arteries gets blocked. Although a large percentage of people survive heart attacks, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report that heart disease is the top cause of death in America. 2
Have you wondered, what does an EKG technician do? Monitoring the electrical activity of the heart is a major part of EKG tech duties. If you wonder what does an EKG tech does, think about a cardiogram. An EKG tech is the person who places electrodes on your body, perhaps on your legs, chest and arms. As part of their EKG tech duties, techs might switch electrodes to get a more clear reading.
How EKG Tech Duties Can Help Prevent Heart Failure
EKG Technician duties helps to identify and prevent cardiac conditions. To identify and prevent a patient’s heart from failing, an EKG technician works in conjunction with medical specialists like nurses, dieticians, nutritionists and physicians. Should a patient’s heart show damage after running an EKG, a doctor might schedule a patient to have an EKG (which is usually performed by an EKG technician) several times a year.
Other steps that are taken to identify and prevent heart failure include:
- Asking patients about their diet, including when they eat and how large their food portions are. Doctors also find out the types of beverages patients consume.
- Getting familiar with a patient’s stress levels. For example, a doctor might ask a patient how many hours she typically works each week.
- To prevent heart failure, doctors offer patients ways to relax and lower stress. This may involve meditation and deep breathing. It could also include taking a vacation or short-term disability.
- Making exercise a part of a patient’s lifestyle. Depending on the extinct of the heart failure, a physician might start a patient off with very light exercise, then increase the exercise to a moderate level.
- An EKG technician may regularly test the strength of the patient’s heart. Tests are conducted while a person is lying on a medical bed.
EKG technician work hours depend on the employer. On average, people performing EKG tech duties work full time.
Places where you could work in Michigan include private doctors’ offices, hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare facilities. Structured classroom and hands on training that you receive may be a first step to meeting medical assistant and EKG technician job description requirements.
EKG training is specialized, and offered at EKG technician schools or other schools that offer medical training programs. In Michigan, you can learn how to operate EKGs and support busy physicians and nurses while completing instruction during some medical assistant training programs. Many students finish these Michigan medical assistant training programs in as little as one year.
Dorsey Schools Medical Assistant training program
Instructors at our Dorsey Schools Medical Assistant training program are ready to connect with you and answer your questions. Dorsey School’s Medical Assistant training program strive to prepare adults to work in America’s healthcare system. During the training, students can gain clinical training, billing and medical administration training. After enrolling in the diploma program, students can also receive EKG training.
Contact us to learn more about our Medical Assistant training program. The program is designed to be completed in just one year.
Skilled and experienced instructors at our Dorsey Schools campuses provide training in specific areas such as medical terminology, acute care, home health care and medical administration. You can also learn how to operate an EKG machine. Contact us today to speak with one of our experienced admissions representatives.
Let us support your healthcare and medical training goals. Call us at 1-888-422-1188 to learn how our team can help provide you with important medical training, knowledge, and skills.
Resources:
2 https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm
3 https://www.dorsey.edu/gedt/medical-assistant/
Reviewed and edited 12/6/17
