While it’s troubling that kidney failure is a growing national health problem, approximately 217,000 Americans receive ongoing dialysis. So needless to say, kidney disease continues to drive the growing demand for dialysis technicians. If you have an interest in science and technology and also like working with people, then consider a career as a dialysis technician. It only takes six weeks to complete your training as a Dialysis Technician.
If you think this is something in the medical field that is of interest to you just keep in mind that you must have good customer service skills. Dialysis treatments can add years to the lives of people suffering from kidney disease. Most patients come in for 4-hour treatments, three times a week. So no doubt you would be having a lot of one on one with such patients and can build some lasting friendships.
Dialysis Technician Training
What’s good about becoming a dialysis tech is that there is no technical or vocational schooling required. However, there are many community and technical training schools that offer classes in order to earn your dialysis technician certification. Ranging from six to 12 weeks in length or up to 12 months, these programs include both coursework and supervised clinical experience. If you choose to further your education, that is always a good thing as it ultimately leads to promotions and raises. So the more you know, the more you can make financially.
Your training in completely up to you. Most hospitals offer on-the-job training under the supervision and training of a registered nurse. You will need to have a high school diploma or GED and a valid certification. The classes you take in high school in health and science will also play an important role in your training.
Here are few dialysis technician schools that will get you the training and education needed to become certified as a dialysis technician.
1. Southern Careers Institute – Austin
2301 S. Congress Avenue, Suite 27
Austin, Tx. 78704
2. Independence University
Salt Lake City Campus
5295 S. Commerce Dr.
Salt Lake City, UT. 84107
3. Kaplan University – Online Dialysis Technical School
4. Concordia University
Portland Campus
2811 NE Holman Street
Portland, OR. 97211
5. University of Phoenix – Offers Online Dialysis Technician Training
Dialysis Technician Job Description
Dialysis technicians work in a specialized part of the health care industry closely with individuals whose kidneys are failing. They are vital to he field as they are the only people trained specifically for kidney dialysis care. They have to specialize in maintaining and monitoring hemodialysis machines that perform the duties of a kidney which is that of removing wastes from the patients blood safely. A dialysis tech prepares the patients and performs any necessaary treatment after the dialysis has been completed.
Other important tasks of dialysis technicians include cleaning the area where the blood will be extracted, explaining the procedure and calculating blood flow and fluid removal. They also record the patient’s condition before and after the procedure by noting temperature, blood pressure, weight and respiratory rate.
Dialysis technicians must be patient and pay attention to detail because they have to look after patients before, during and after the dialysis procedure. These technicians must make sure that the patient’s vital signs continue to be normal and that they remain in stable condition.
Most dialysis technicians are employed by hospitals and work directly under the supervision of a registered nurse or physician. Dialysis techs also work in doctor’s offices or in a dialysis unit that is run through private companies.
For those patients who come in on an outpatient basis, they may have little contact with the dialysis nurse, so the dialysis technician is their only source of contact and information concerning their health. That doesn’t mean the dialysis technician has enough education to provide a prognosis for the future, but the technician can pass the patients’ concerns along to the doctor who can discuss the patient’s concerns with him.
As a dialysis technician, you can expect to work an average work-week of at least 40 hours depending on the needs of whatever hospital or doctor’s office you may be employed at. As with any job, schedules are known to fluctuate.
Dialysis Technician Job Salary Range
The health care industry is booming, and this career is no different. Jobs for dialysis technicians are expected to grow faster than average over the next decade. This job growth stems from advancements in dialysis technology and the increase in the number of dialysis patients.
In 2009 dialysis technicians made an average salary of $29,000. Those with more training and experience in their specialized industry can expect to earn an average of salary of $34,300 a year.
Some variables that will effect your annual income include your geographic and job location, your previous job experience, and training. As your experience grows, so will your salary and benefits as these usually go hand in hand in a career field where you must take regular training courses to learn new equipment and procedures. So the more you train, the more you can expect to earn as a dialysis technician.
The benefits for dialysis techs usually include health insurance, sick leave, paid holidays and paid vacations.
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