Prn vs certified medical technician

The differences between prns and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-3 months to become an prn, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, an prn has an average salary of $39,642, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.

The top three skills for an prn include patients, healthcare and occupational therapy. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.

Prn vs certified medical technician overview

	PRN	Certified Medical Technician
Yearly salary	$39,642	$38,859
Hourly rate	$19.06	$18.68
Growth rate	9%	5%
Number of jobs	72,309	164,424
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Average age	42	44
Years of experience	3	12

What does an prn do?

A PRN or a "pro re nata" employee is responsible for covering a shift or a specific situation, especially during short-staffing or the need to complete a particular task. The PRNs often work for a medical industry without a regular or full-time commitment, having the freedom to manage their time and take multiple assignments from different organizations. A PRN must have excellent communication and organization skills, providing quality healthcare services to the patients and the organization.

What does a certified medical technician do?

Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.

Prn vs certified medical technician salary

Prns and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	PRN	Certified Medical Technician
Average salary	$39,642	$38,859
Salary range	Between $17,000 And $89,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Davis, CA	Denton, TX
Highest paying state	Hawaii	Alaska
Best paying company	Erlanger Health System	Favorite Healthcare Staffing
Best paying industry	Professional	Health Care

Differences between prn and certified medical technician education

There are a few differences between an prn and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:

	PRN	Certified Medical Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 41%	Bachelor's Degree, 28%
Most common major	Nursing	Nursing
Most common college	-	University of Connecticut

Prn vs certified medical technician demographics

Here are the differences between prns' and certified medical technicians' demographics:

	PRN	Certified Medical Technician
Average age	42	44
Gender ratio	Male, 21.0% Female, 79.0%	Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 13.6% Asian, 8.3% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	7%	8%

Differences between prn and certified medical technician duties and responsibilities

Prn example responsibilities.

Develop discharge plans base on individual patients' medical and ADL needs to ensure safety and security issues are addressed.
Experience with ICU patients including ventilator and non-ventilator dependent patients.
Tend to the physical and emotional needs of patients recovering from critical injury or extensive orthopedic surgery.
Provide patient rehabilitation to primarily geriatric short/long term care patients of different diagnosis and document treatment sessions appropriately.
Provide PRN speech services including evaluation and treatments in acute care, inpatient rehabilitation, and outpatient settings with adult populations
Incorporate invasive monitoring and CPR skills as needed.

Certified medical technician example responsibilities.

Maintain the cleanliness of storage areas, trays, centrifuges, refrigerators, freezers and work area.
Administer medications to patients according to their medication record as scheduled, as needed according to physician orders.
Perform laboratory test and procedures in areas including chemistry, hematology, urinalysis, coagulation, serology, and bacteriology.
Perform first aid and apply CPR when necessary.
Perform first aid or CPR during medical emergencies until paramedics arrive.
Assist the residents in their ADL needs and prepare their meals.

Prn vs certified medical technician skills

Common prn skills

Patients, 29%
Healthcare, 9%
Occupational Therapy, 7%
CPR, 5%
Rehabilitation, 5%
Customer Service, 4%

Common certified medical technician skills

Patients, 17%
Vital Signs, 12%
CPR, 8%
Administer Medications, 7%
Resident Care, 6%
HIPAA, 6%

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PRN vs Certified Medical Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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