115 | EKG tech and scribe role in the ED | Communication and teamwork

Welcome to the show Sean and Cheyenne, EKG tech experience and scribe experience

Sean talks about certifications and expectations that go beyond merely obtaining an EKG as well as the stress testing role

Cheyenne talks about the role that scribes play in the ED

Scribing for providers is often used as a role to gain patient experience for medical school or PA school

They talk about how they got into scribing and EKG technician work and Sean talks about how it is also a role that is used as a steppingstone

12 leads are complicated to interpret and require a lot of training and experience to get good at. They are even harder to interpret when the patient is not in front of you

STEMI’s are the key EKG’s to recognize because they are so time sensitive, but we don’t see these frequently – it can be very helpful when the tech recognizes this and can recognize the urgency

Knowing early signs of impending problems on the 12 lead can be helpful for patient prioritization as well

Being an EKG tech requires good resource utilization, sometimes there are not a ton of EKG techs available in the hospital, so they need to prioritize – communication is key

Communication between roles is so important when we are trying to get quickly get imaging, labs, assessments and EKG simultaneously 

At the end of the day, the patient is the top priority

Scribes do deal with a lot of stress, they must finish notes, write new notes and keep up with high volume, they like active communication with the provider

Sean talks about how a typical day can vary quite a bit

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Everything you hear today from myself and my guests is opinion only and doesn’t represent any organizations or companies that any of us are affiliated with. The stories you hear have been modified to protect patient privacy and any resemblance to real individuals is coincidental. This is for educational and entertainment purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice nor used to diagnose any medical or healthcare conditions.