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Online Patient Care Technician
Become a Patient Care Technician
Patient care technicians play a critical role at healthcare facilities, assisting with inpatient treatment and helping provide quality of life. The 100% online course will prepare you to work as a patient care technician.
Job Outlook for Patient Care Technicians
- The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that patient care professionals, including nursing assistants and orderlies, earn a median annual salary of $28,000.
- The BLS also estimates that job opportunities in the patient care field will grow by 8% by 2028.
Patient Care Technician FAQs
WHAT DOES A PATIENT CARE TECHNICIAN DO?
Patient care technicians help care for patients in healthcare facilities, which include hospitals, medical offices, and long-term care facilities. Specific patient care duties may include:
- Helping patients get in and out of bed
- Assisting with patients or mobility
- Tracking patient progress
- Listening to patient concerns and communicating these to the primary care provider
- Checking vital signs and collecting samples
ARE PATIENT CARE TECHNICIANS THE SAME AS CERTIFIED NURSING AIDS?
Essentially, patient care technicians and nursing aids perform the same duties in a healthcare setting. However, patient care technicians may also work under doctors and physical therapists in addition to nurses.
Course Information
Course Objectives
- Introduction to patient care, legal issues in healthcare, standard precautions, and infection control
- Medical terminology, physical examination, patient positioning, bed mobility, range of motion
- Therapeutic exercises, gait, assistive devices, orthosis and prosthesis, transfer techniques
- Wound care and pressure sores, wheelchair management, patient care competency, special topics
Prerequisites:
There are no prerequisites to take this course.
Curriculum
INTRODUCTION TO PATIENT CARE
INFECTION CONTROL & STANDARD PRECAUTION
LEGAL ISSUES IN HEALTHCARE
INTRODUCTION TO ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY
MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY
PHYSICAL ASSESSMENT & EXAMINATION
PATIENT POSITIONING AND BED MOBILITY TECHNIQUES
RANGE OF MOTION
THERAPEUTIC EXERCISES
GAIT
ASSISTIVE DEVICES
ORTHOSIS AND PROSTHESIS
TRANSFER TECHNIQUES
WOUND CARE AND PRESSURE SORES
WHEELCHAIR MANAGEMENT
PATIENT CARE COMPETENCY
SPECIAL TOPICS
Instructors
Jacqueline Garcia
Jacqueline Garcia is a Certified Postsecondary Professional Instructor (CPPI), specializing in patient care education. Beyond actively training future patient care technicians, she develops academic content and curriculum for a number of programs.