The Cardiology Technologist can work in the hospital cardiology departments, cardiac rehabilitation centers and clinics testing patients for heart problems to help their physicians prevent any major problems with the heart.
Primary Responsibilities:
- The Cardiologist Technologist prepares the patient for the examination for the doctor.
- The Cardiologist Technologist specializes in invasive procedures.
The Cardiologist Technologist helps in the performance of testing that can help prevent heart attacks or strokes. The Cardiologist Technologist help doctors diagnose and treat disorders of the heart and blood vessels. The Cardiologist Tech assists the Cardiologist with cardiac catheterizations. A small tube called a catheter is threaded through a patient’s artery from the groin to the heart. The procedure can determine whether a vessel that supplies blood to the heart is blocked. This is one of the procedures performed by the Cardiologist Tech.
The Cardiologist Tech may assist the doctor in treating blockages. Part of the Cardiologist Tech job is to prepare the patient for this procedure by positioning the patient on the examining table then shaves, cleans, and numbs the top of the leg near the groin. The Cardiologist Tech monitors the patient’s blood pressure and heart rate during the procedure. Cardiologist Tech also monitors patients during open-heart surgery and other heart-related procedures. The Cardiologist Tech runs noninvasive tests as the electrocardiogram (EKG). This is a relatively simple test the Cardiologist Tech attaches fastens disk-like electrodes to the patient’s chest, arms, and legs explaining to the patient about the procedure in order to keep the patient calm. The Cardiologist Tech wants to limit faulty readings brought on by stress. The Cardiologist Tech operates the controls on the EKG machine once the electrodes are in place picking up signals from the heart the machine can give the Cardiologist Tech a reading. The machine is equipped with a special pen or stylus that records the heartbeat patterns on graph paper.
The Cardiologist Tech with enough training can administer more advanced type of cardiolovascular tests. The Cardiologist Tech can administer Halter monitoring which is a twenty-four to forty-eight hour surveillance of a patient going about a normal daily routine which consists of:
- Sitting at work or home
- Standing while at work
- Eating meals or snack time
- Sleeping afternoon nap and regular overnight rest.
The Cardiologist Tech places electrodes on the patient’s chest and a portable cassette monitor is strapped to the patient’s waist when the testing period is ended then a print out is made available for the physician to interpret. The other popular tests that the Cardiologist Tech administers are the Treadmill Stress test. The Cardiologist Tech must take the patient’s medical history, resting heartbeat and blood pressure before having the patient start the test. The patient then starts walking slowly on a treadmill as the Cardiologist Tech increases the treadmill’s speed while monitoring the performance of the patient’s heart. The Treadmill Stress test is a way of determining the effect of increased exertion on a patient’s heart. These tests are ways to determine if a patient has any heart problems that could result in a heart attack or stroke. It is one of the ways that a Cardiologist can help a patient to live a longer healthier life. The Cardiologist Tech provides the information that the Cardiologist needs to properly take care of the patient and the Tech can also assist in the treatment.
The Cardiologist Tech must have a high school diploma to become a Cardiology Technologist. The possibility of getting on the job training in hospitals is how some Cardiologist Techs get started. You must take eight to sixteen weeks of on the job training before you can work in the field. Most Cardiologist Technologist takes at least a two-year community college or technical school program. The recommended courses of study to pursue the field are health, biology, anatomy and mathematics. When you have had some course study and two years or more of community college you can be certified by the American Cardiology Technologists Association. It does not take nearly as long to become a Cardiology Technologist than it does to become a professional Cardiologist. Normally you can apply to your local hospital, a cardiac rehab center or clinics of doctors who specialize in heart care to be accepted into the profession.