Medical Instrument Technician - Electrocardiograph Technicians (EKG)

Summary

Medical instrument technicians (EKG) at this level operate and monitor electrocardiographic equipment to perform specialized examinations and studies involving exercise stress testing, ambulatory monitoring of arrhythmias and STAT EKG's within 10 minutes. They monitor tracings to identify arrhythmias and when gross abnormalities appear, when to repeat certain procedures, when to stop test procedures, and when to get immediate attention of a physician.

Duties

- Enter patient data, place all ECG leads in their proper position on the patient, run a standard 12-lead EKG. Check ECG to make certain it is of diagnostic quality. - Adjust necessary for eliminating artifact, including calming and relaxing the patient in case of muscle artifact, moving electrical cords in the case of 60 Hz artifacts, waiting and reapplying electrodes in the case of baseline drift, and asking the patient to breathe easier or hold his/her breath in the case of respiratory artifact. - Run a rhythm strip if requested, or if rhythm is abnormal, mark the ECG as to any abnormal circumstances under which the ECG was performed. - Mark the patient's chest with a felt tip marker to maintain consistency of serial EKGS when performing ECGS in the MICU or CCU. - Identify life-threatening arrhythmias, such as ventricular tachycardia and cardiac standstill, notify the appropriate personnel of an actual or potential code arrest, retrieve and plug in the crash cart, place the electrodes from the monitor on the patient, and begin cardiopulmonary resuscitation techniques until a physician arrives. - Schedule patients for holter monitoring, including scheduling and checking patients in and out of the ECG laboratory, cleaning, setting up, and calibrating the holter for scanning. - Clean and prep chest area where electrodes are to be placed, place and secure electrodes to patient's chest ensuring adequate contact to conduct test for up to 48 hours. - Test patient's recorder hookup to ensure that signal is large enough to be scanned and that muscle or cable movement produces the least amount of artifact. - Inventory and order supplies necessary for conducting cardiac procedures. Maintain equipment and controls supplies in good working order. Notify the MIT supervisor of equipment malfunction.

Qualifications

Basic Requirements

- United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. - Education: There are no specific educational requirements for this occupation. - Licensure or Certification: Licensure or Certification is not required for this occupation; however, it is strongly desirable at GS-6 or above as evidence of possession of the essential knowledge, skills, and abilities. For certain functional areas at the higher levels or supervisory assignments, specific certifications appropriate to the specialty are indicated in this standard under "Titles and Certification/Registrations". For all specialties identified in this standard, Basic and Advanced Cardiac Life Support certifications are desirable.

Grade Determinations

At least 1 year of experience comparable to the next lower grade level which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics related to the duties of the positions to be filled. This would be experience which provided knowledge of the equipment, standard tests and procedures, and typical readings including arrhythmias and abnormalities. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs: 1. Knowledge of typical patient reactions and signs of distress including the ability to recognize, report and treat potentially lethal arrhythmias. 2. Knowledge of common equipment settings and standardized procedures plus knowledge of common errors and corrective measures. 3. Ability to modify procedures/positions to obtain the correct results with patients with complicating conditions such as amputations, Parkinson's disease, structural defects, and scar tissue. 4. Ability to act as a mentor or preceptor to lower graded technicians. 5. Ability to conduct in-service training on the EKG equipment and related instrumentation.

Physical Requirements

- Visual acuity, keen hearing, clear distinctive speech, and manual dexterity. - Potentially long periods of continued walking, standing, stooping, sitting, bending, pulling, and pushing. - Transferring patients and objects may be required. - Mechanical lifts are provided. - Exposure to infected patients and contaminated materials. - Exposure to patients who are combative secondary to delirium, dementia, or psychiatric disorders. - Mature and sensible individual capable of working effectively in stressful situations and able to shift priorities based on patient needs. - Lifting and transportation of bulky supplies and equipment are required.