EKG Technician: Career Path & How to Get Started

The heart is an important muscle that pumps blood throughout your body. Signals send electricity through your heart and regulate this beating action. When the heart's electricity is disturbed, so is the heart's rhythm. So, the EKG (electrocardiogram) was developed to create a picture that allows doctors, nurses, and technicians to visualize the heart's electrical activity in an easy and rapid manner. With the increase of heart attacks and heart failure in the population, the demand for EKG technicians is high. To become an EKG technician, you may be able to learn on the job or take classes for a year.

Instructions

• 1

  Talk to EKG technicians. Ask them about the pros and cons of the field and shadow them for the day.

• 2

  After researching the field, try to arrange to train on the job for 8 to 16 weeks. Experienced EKG technicians or cardiologists (heart doctors) will be your mentors. Learn to properly attach the EKG electrodes to a patient's chest, arm, and legs. Print out the EKG and roughly interpret it. Ask questions if you are unsure.

• 3

  If you don't want to train on the job, go to EKG technician school. Many employers require EKG technician certification prior to employment. Check with your potential employers for specific requirements. If you go to school, successfully pass the classes and exams. Here, you will learn about basic EKG concepts, Holter monitoring (a device that constantly monitors heart's electricity for 24 hours or more), and stress testing (the EKG obtained when patients are walking or running on a treadmill).

• 4

  After becoming a certified EKG technician, you are ready to seek a position as an EKG technician.