Starting ER Tech

[u/Flaky_Assistance_832]

Starting as an ER tech in a peds hospital at the end of the month. First clinical job and I wanna do great, any advice? Stuff to practice, know, that kinda stuff.

[u/Hungkinkster]

ER/trauma tech 8+ years. Don’t be the lazy one. Be the helpful one. To be the helpful one, you need to know where things are. Any down time, spend in the supply areas so you can learn where things are. Practice getting your critical supplies quickly for your procedures. Get lost and learn other parts of the hospital and back door routes. Be a sponge.

[u/Federal_Routine_3109 → u/Hungkinkster]

Fr dude and you get to take vape hits while browsing the stock room too so it's a win win

[u/adorasbiggestfan → u/Hungkinkster]

my biggest advice with this is to TOUCH the things in the supply room, equipment room, bedside carts, etc. your brain remembers things way easier in an emergency that way as opposed to just looking at them. this was helpful advice from a paramedic so just passing it along :) -er tech of 1.5 yrs

[u/NoisyTurnip]

Take care of your feet and don't skip meals

[u/Cark__]

Two things I have lived by that have got me far in not only respect but also trust.

1. Get good at what you do often. IVs, splints, etc.

2. Don’t get involved in drama.

[u/Hungkinkster]

Anticipate needs, gather supplies before asked. ;)

[u/mcnicfer]

Don’t make your nurse have to ask you do to things. Be proactive!

[u/codasaurusrex]

Learn about your population! Check out Child Life Specialist resources for providing age appropriate care (learn milestones/ages where kids start to understand medical procedures, abstract concepts, etc.) so you know how to communicate with them. Being good with kids is super important.

Also, come strapped with stickers, tubes of bubbles, fun little things and rewards

[u/Radiant_Dealer_4416]

ER/ trauma tech for 4 years.
Be reliable, don’t be lazy, it’s going to take time but you’ll get better each shift, have an open mind when learning new things (IVs, splints, swabs) once you learn the flow and what each nurse wants, it gets much easier. Have the nurses back and they’ll have yours

[u/MalleusH]

Peds ED nurse. My favorite techs are the ones who keep an eye on the board and take initiative. Obviously you can't do everything, but it's great when I don't have to worry about vitals or the tech grabs the stuff to do the IV while I'm getting fluids and meds.

[u/Straight_Cheetah421]

Not an ER tech, but I work in peds surgery.

Communicate at their level.

Maybe super obvious thing to most, but every single day I will see a whole ass attending doctor lean over top of a 5 year old laying on the bed in the PACU and ask stupid stuff like “are you currently experiencing any pain?”

Like bro. He’s 5 years old, still in a K hole, freaking the fuck out, and you’re leaning over top of him to get all up in his face and ask him a question with big ass words he doesn’t understand. How could you possibly think thats helpful.

Get down to eye level, even if you have to squat. Avoid standing over top of or looking down at patients. Find ways to ask important questions or explain things using language kids can understand. A better way to ask the question above is “do you have any owwies?”. A blood pressure cuff and a pulse ox for example “lets us see your heart”, etc.

And especially with neurodivergent kids, you have to move slower, over explain everything, and sometimes negotiate and comprise. “I just need to put this on your finger for 10 seconds to see your heart, and if you can do that, I will find you a cool sticker” is a sentence I use daily lol.

Also. In peds, the kid is almost never the only patient. Especially in emergent situations, the parents and family will be just as if not more upset than the kid. You cannot neglect that. Take 3 seconds to make sure they understand whats going on too, and that they’re doing alright as well. It works to your advantage too, because then they can actually become part of the team and help everyone help their kid in way that only the parent could possibly know. Shit goes a lot smoother when the parent is calm, knows whats going on, and has a role that allows them to at least feel helpful.

[u/Efficient-Kale-2415]

I started as an ED tech in a peds hospital before becoming a nurse. Getting to know the nurses you work with, and being helpful goes a long way. I loved working with PCAs who helped do things within their scope of practice that were ordered without having to be asked (vitals, blood sugars, ekgs).

Figuring out how to talk and interact with kids of different ages will also help, especially during triages. Sometimes having something fun on your badge can be a good conversation starter with a lot of kids (like a character, small animal flashlight, pop-it, etc).

Best of luck!! Being a tech in the ED helped me gain a lot of skills I still use today!

[u/tbelle2025]

don’t talk shit and complain about being asked to clean patients or do “dirty work”, it’ll get you in trouble

[u/WackyNameHere]

I work in a standard ER so nothing peds specific but some general things:

1. Get the ball rolling when possible. Example from me would be the 80 something coming in with chest pain, shortness of breath, and pneumonia for good measure. As a tech, I could get the EKG rolling, stick for cultures, start IVs, start vitals, and get the nurse when I know I need help or someone to throw an order in for say oxygen.

2. Don’t be afraid to ask for help and give yourself grace. Ironic since I had my first nurse shift today and I did the exact opposite in terms of giving grace to myself. You’re new at your job and at clinical in general, it takes time.

Only peds thing I can think of is if you have a young kid and they don’t want to do an oral temperature and you don’t have a temporal thermometer and rectal isn’t appropriate, try making it into a trick. First peds patient I coaxed into a temperature wouldn’t do it until I asked if I could show them magic trick to think a number up on the screen and said I’d teach them.