Polysomnographic Technologist - Alliance

Polysomnographic Technologist

Position Summary:

Polysomnographic Technologist works under the general supervision of the clinical director to provide comprehensive evaluation and treatment of sleep disorders. This may involve polysomnography, diagnostic and therapeutic services or patient care and education. The Polysomnographic Technologist can perform the duties defined for a Polysomnographic Technician and may provide supervision of other staff.

Qualifications:

• High School graduate or equivalent.
• Satisfactory completion of a polysomnography program of no less than one-year duration OR satisfactory completion of an A-STEP introductory course/final exam with a state licensed and/or nationally accredited educational facility.
• Certified by the Board of Registered Polysomnographic Technologist as a Registered Polysomnographic Technologist (RPGST) or will obtain within a minimum of 18 months after hire, if eligible. Must meet the minimum hours of work in this field to be eligible to complete registry exam.
• Obtain and maintain current American Heart Association (AHA) training in Basic Life Support (BLS) utilizing Resuscitation Quality Improvement (RQI) is required.

Skills:

• Polysomnographic data acquisition and monitoring.
• Electrode and sensor application according to published standards.
• Equipment preparation, calibration, and troubleshooting.
• Positive Airway Pressure (PAP) mask fitting and titration.
• Effective written and verbal communication.
• Ability to function independently and adapt to changing priorities.
• Computer literacy for data entry and report generation.
• Collecting and integrating patient information for individualized care.
• Explaining pre-testing, testing, and post-testing procedures clearly.
• Implementing therapeutic interventions (CPAP, BiPAP, oxygen administration).
• Demonstrates positive interpersonal and social skills.
• Demonstrates flexibility and ability to work with all levels of personnel.
• Demonstrates professional conduct in the clinical setting.

Responsibilities:

• Collect, analyze, and integrate patient information in order to identify and meet the patient-specific needs and to determine final testing parameters/procedures in conjunction with the ordering physician or clinical director and laboratory protocols.
• Complete and verify documentation.
• Explain pre-testing, testing, and post-testing procedures to the patient.
• Prepare and calibrate equipment required for testing to determine proper functioning and make adjustments if necessary.
• Apply electrodes and sensors according to accepted published standards.
• Perform appropriate physiological calibrations to ensure proper signal and make adjustments, if necessary.
• Perform positive airway pressure (PAP) mask fitting.
• Follow procedural protocols to ensure collection of appropriate data.
• Follow lights out procedures to establish and document baseline values.
• Perform Polysomnographic data acquisition while monitoring study-tracing quality to ensure signals are artifact-free and make adjustments, if necessary.
• Document routine observations including sleep stages and clinical events, changes in procedure, and significant events in order to facilitate scoring and interpretation of polysomnographic results.
• Implement appropriate interventions (including actions necessary for patient safety and therapeutic interventions such as continuous and bi-level positive airway pressure, oxygen administration, etc.).
• Follow lights on procedures to verify integrity of collected data and complete the data collection process.
• Score sleep/wake stages by applying professionally accepted guidelines.
• Score clinical events according to center specific protocols.
• Generate accurate reports by tabulating sleep/wake and clinical event data.
• Comply with applicable laws, regulations, guidelines, and standards regarding safety and infection control issues.
• Perform routine and complex equipment care and maintenance.
• Evaluate sleep study related equipment and inventory.
• Demonstrate effective written and spoken communication skills.
• Demonstrate appropriate social skills.
• Respond to study participant’s procedural-related inquiries by providing appropriate information.
• Comply with the BRPT Standards of…