Juliakbran Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 I have interview for a PCT (Patient Care Technician) job for both the Neuro floor and the ICU. Which would give me the best experience so I'm more comfortable in PA school? Which will give me the advantage on my PA school application? Thanks, Julia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lov2xlr8 Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Neuro is pretty specialized, though ICU is as well. But I feel the ICU would offer you more in terms of seeing more, doing more, etc, make you a little better rounded... Either will look great on an application though. I was a PCT in Surgery for a little over a year, recommend to anyone applying to PA school to have at least a year (though many of the admins on here will scoff at that statement) in a hospital, the terminology you will learn will help a lot in school as well as getting a feel for the hospital environment, I loved it, though the money was... less than desirable (lots of Ramen). Good Luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsRonSwanson Posted February 22, 2012 Share Posted February 22, 2012 Either would look good. What are you more interested in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Well, ICU typically doesn't have many techs (our hospital has just one) since the RN/patient ratio is higher than on any other unit. So you get to do and see a lot. If the RN/pt ratio is good, this also means some down time for homework. If it's bad, though, and you are the only (or one of the only) techs, you will be wiping *** and giving bed baths without a break. Neuro, never worked it, but one big plus is your patients are generally conscious (or a con, depending on your view lol). I think they are equal. It comes down to what you're interested in personally. If you can find out how busy the units are beforehand, that may help. When I do ICU nights, some nights it is non-stop and at the end of the shift I am dying from exhaustion. But typically I get a good 2 hour period where I just intermittenly have to help bathe someone and get adequate time to hit the books. I have really enjoyed my ICU experience and think you can't really go wrong there. Like I said, never worked neuro, but think it'd be just as good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doc Savage Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 I was an ICU Tech also! You hit the nail on the head. You get to see a lot. I worked in a general ICU, so we took cardiac, surgery, and all other types of critical care patients (Pulmpnary, DKA, trauma, etc.) Even on the busy days when I did not have time to spit, I still learned a lot from the nurses and the docs. I asked questions and was very engaged in learning. I do not think a day went by that I did not ask the docs or nurses at least 5 major questions about something. On a slow day I would look up information about patients and do a lot of self research. I think it was a phenominal experience for me. Between that, and my combat medic experience, I was super prepared for PA school. I have not worked neuro either though. I can only tell you one side of the fence... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sealer04tx Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Same here. Never worked Neuro, working as an ICU tech right now in a general ICU, learning TONS, seeing TONS, great experience. Variety is good, seeing neuro cases, fresh hearts, overdoses, renal failure, etc let's you learn a broader amount before learning the deeper stuff in PA school. Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiaroscuro27 Posted February 23, 2012 Share Posted February 23, 2012 Former Critical Care tech here. I can't say enough about the job: great exposure with a wonderful staff that was willing to teach. They let me do so much, and because I floated through the entire unit I got a chance to see all types of pathology. And it definitely prepared me well for PA school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kphelps248 Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 I'm going to be a complete Debbie Downer with this post, but... I'm a nursing assistant at a hospital. My "home" floor is post-surgical but I often float to other floors, including ICU and Neuro. To be honest, I have never been so bored in my entire life for the times I have floated to these floors. As someone else has mentioned, the RN-to-patient ratio is a lot lower, so the RN does the majority of the work for the patient. For ICU, all I did was stock supplies, transport patients and assist with repositioning the patient. For Neuro, I am typically assigned as a "sitter" in which I just sit and watch one patient to make sure they don't harm themselves or others. You can learn a lot if the nurses are willing to show you, but I feel like I get a lot more hands-on experience on my floor as well as when I float to orthopedics, pediatrics, endocrine and acute care of the elderly. However, if I had to choose between ICU and Neuro, I would say go to ICU because you may see Neuro patients there anyway. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sealer04tx Posted February 27, 2012 Share Posted February 27, 2012 I'm going to be a complete Debbie Downer with this post, but... I'm a nursing assistant at a hospital. My "home" floor is post-surgical but I often float to other floors, including ICU and Neuro. To be honest, I have never been so bored in my entire life for the times I have floated to these floors. As someone else has mentioned, the RN-to-patient ratio is a lot lower, so the RN does the majority of the work for the patient. For ICU, all I did was stock supplies, transport patients and assist with repositioning the patient. For Neuro, I am typically assigned as a "sitter" in which I just sit and watch one patient to make sure they don't harm themselves or others. You can learn a lot if the nurses are willing to show you, but I feel like I get a lot more hands-on experience on my floor as well as when I float to orthopedics, pediatrics, endocrine and acute care of the elderly. However, if I had to choose between ICU and Neuro, I would say go to ICU because you may see Neuro patients there anyway. Good luck! I think that is a fair point. Most of my best ICU experience has come because its my home floor and the nurses let me "help them out" a little bit more. I've tried to be real proactive about offering to help and get involved, which is an option only because I've been able to get to know everyone/work with great people. Even with that, I would still do more on a regular floor (measure I/Os, take vitals, have more explaination of care with patients, etc). Most of what I've learned has been because I'll get to sit and research the drugs around me or the pathologies, or talk through patient issues with the PA as their charting. If you really want to do the most, try the ER, but don't expect to have a ton of time to ask questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mktalon Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Kphelps, what you describe may be your experience, which is completely valid, but I am actually quite shocked at the boredom you experienced in the ICU. I don't think many techs have such a limited role in their ICUs. Perhaps it is only because you are floating there and dont know the nurses well enough for them to trust you with more involved tasks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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