Workshops in the CAT Program

Hello Everyone,

It’s been already 6 month that I have started my Cardiology program. From my point of view I would like to say that I’m very impressed with the amount of knowledge I have gained so far in the field of Cardiology. Credit goes to my teachers and also my class. I’m very shocked & impressed with the amount of abnormalities one can detect on reading an ECG. Anyhow, in this blog I would like to talk about the little workshop courses we have taken in the past months all related to our program.

Body Mechanics workshop

The first workshop we took was called “Body Mechanics” in which we have learned how to properly move your body while transferring a patient from a bed to stretcher / wheelchair. This one day workshop was very significant to our profession as we have to deal with patients on a daily basis who might require patient transfer before we start to perform an ECG. Not using appropriate techniques and straining your body will cause work injuries primarily on your back.

Therefore, as health professionals, we need to be aware of how we move our Body appropriately and prevent any injuries to ourselves. Having a back injury for instance can really affect one’s life as it prevents you from going to work, take care of your family or just even from performing daily activities..

So our instructor has assured that we are aware of using proper body mechanics before we get into the field so that we can start our career safely..

Medical Asepsis workshop

The 2nd workshop we have completed lately is called “Medical Asepsis”. After I have washed my hands with soap and sang the happy birthday song three times in the row, I put my hand under an ultraviolet light to see if they are clean. I shocked for a second as there were still some spots on my hand that did not get washed properly. So, I really took this workshop serious to learn appropriate ways to wash my hands and also how to use additional safety precautions like gown, mask & glasses so that I will never be accused in spreading germs to whoever I touch and vice versa

Both nurses who taught us these workshops were excellent within their profession and have made it clear to us how important it is to maintain good hygiene during work using appropriate body mechanics to prevent harm to ourselves and the ones surrounding us.

To my consciousness I know that we will have a couple of upcoming workshops like CPR, First Aid etc. So I’m definitely excited to take them and develop a wide knowledge within my field. All I can say so far is that all the courses have been awesome.

Mask fitting test

Moreover, we have had a mask fitting test done as we needed to be aware of using right fitting masks for dealing with patients that are under isolation. The specific masks that we have tried out are called N95 Respirator masks that come in a variety of sizes. We needed to try them out to find out which size fits us so that we would wear the right mask before we would enter a room which is under Airborne Precautions. Hence, this type of testing was very important for us to complete.

So far within my cardiology program I have had three workshops which were all for our advantage. As I’ve mentioned before, there is more to come in regards to workshops and I will keep everyone updated – as always.

All is Well!

To know more about Cardiology Technologist Program and Career, check out this video.