Patient Care Technician (PCT) Resume Sample & Skills

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Christian Eilers, CPRW

Career Expert

Updated: December 23, 2024

Reviewed by:

Caio Sampaio, CPRW

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You’re eager to start your medical career and gain some experience as a patient care technician. Great. To do it right, you need to start by writing an excellent resume for a patient care technician.

No need to call a doctor! We’ve got you covered. Read on, and you’ll learn how to ace a patient care assistant resume and land that job you’re after!

This guide will show you:

A patient care technician resume example better than 9 out of 10 other resumes.
How to write a patient care technician resume that will land you more interviews.
Tips and examples of how to put skills and achievements on a patient care technician resume.
How to describe your experience on a resume for a patient care technician to get any job you want.
The best PCA job description for a resume.

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patient care technician resume templates

Use this resume template

Sample Patient Care Technician Resume—See more resume examples here.

One of our users, Anjeanette, had this to say:

Zety suggested tips and revised my resume in a way I never could. Helped me word things in a much more intelligent fashion and got me my dream job.

Here are other resume examples similar to PCT jobs:

Now, let’s perform some patient care on yours—

Patient Care Technician Resume Sample

Virginia S. Stapleton

Certified Patient Care Technician / Assistant (CPCT/A)

Virginia.S.Stapleton@gmail.com

(719) 253-7305

linkedin.com/in/VirginiaSStapleton

Summary of Qualifications

Compassionate and competent certified patient care technician / assistant (CPCT/A) with 4+ years of experience providing patients with top care and assisting with their everyday necessities. Assigned to assist 15+ patients per week, both in the rehabilitation center as well as at home. Seeking to leverage knowledge of basic medical assisting, phlebotomy, EKG, and essential nursing procedures to become the next PCT at Reiner’s Rehabilitation Resort.

Work Experience

Patient Care Technician / Assistant
October 2017–July 2019
Rocky Mountain Rehab Center, Colorado Springs, CO

Key Qualifications & Responsibilities

Performed all necessary and requested patient care procedures, including keeping rooms clean and neat, monitoring vital signs, and other fundamental care actions.
Maintained medication, nutrition, and physical fitness regimen for appropriate patients.
Assisted treatment center and rehabilitation staff with basic medical and nursing procedures.
Provided emotional support, physical assistance, and encouragement for patients on their road to substance abuse rehabilitation.

Key Achievements

Successfully assisted 15+ patients per week, both in the rehabilitation center as well as at home.

Patient Care Tech & Nurse Aide
February 2015–October 2017
Monumental Medical Professionals, Monument, CO

Key Qualifications & Responsibilities

Provided ongoing medical support of patients to nursing staff, specialized doctors, and outside health consultants.
Observed and monitored patients’ vital signs, including pulse, blood pressure, and respiration.
Performed preliminary diagnostic tests and pre-op practices to ready patients for nurse visits.
Executed daily personal hygiene tasks per patient, including room tidying, daily baths, and changing linens.

Key Achievements

Received the 2018 “Most Personable PCT” award for the State of Colorado by the PCTAUS.

Education

Majoring in Health Services Administration

Drexel University Online, Philadelphia, PA

Expected Completion: 2021

Relevant Coursework: Laboratory and Diagnostic Procedures, Medical Terminology, Leadership in Health Services Administration, Healthcare Policy, Healthcare Ethics, Medical Assisting, Medical Coding and Billing, Electronic Health Records.

High School Diploma

Colorado Springs High School, Colorado Springs, CO

Graduation: 2014

Key Skills

Patient Personal Hygiene & Emotional Support
Phlebotomy
Electrocardiogram (ECG / EKG)
Monitoring & Recording Vital Signs
Administration of Basic Nursing Procedures
Communication Skills

Languages

Norwegian: Professional Working Proficiency

Certifications

Patient Care Technician Certification (Including EKG & Phlebotomy)
Certified Patient Care Technician / Assistant (CPCT/A)

Memberships

The National Patient Care Technician Association (NPCTA)

Here’s how to write a resume for patient care technician jobs:

1. Select the Best Format for Your Patient Care Technician Resume

A patient care technician is a paraprofessional who assists patients with basic nursing, preparatory and non-intensive procedures, general hygiene, mobility, and other elemental care tasks. A patient care technician resume must show the registered nurse, primary care physician, or other supervisory medical staff that you have the skills and motivation to be a great PCT.

So—

Before you begin creating your PCT resume, format the patient care resume template correctly.

Here’s how to do it:

What goes under your name on a resume? That would be the phone number and contact info on a resume.
For the various sections of a resume, place big, bold titles above to make each one stand out for the employer to see.
If you’re looking for the proper resume format, look no further than the chronological resume format—it’s the most popular among recruiters and the easiest to read.
When choosing the best typeface to use, don’t forget to adjust your resume font size—stick to around 11–12pts in the main text.

Pro Tip: Should you send your resume in PDF or Word .docx format? Choose the PDF version unless they ask otherwise, as it’s the most versatile and can be read on any device.

2. Write a Patient Care Technician Resume Objective or Summary

On a patient care associate resume, your professional profile is the PCT objective or summary paragraph at the top.

It’s similar to an elevator pitch.

Here’s how to choose the right one:

Use the professional summary statement when you have plenty of PCT experience. The summary statement gives the healthcare facility or hospital a brief rundown of your patient care technician background and medical skills. To really bring it home, include a top accomplishment from your PCT past with numbers.

Use the professional objective statement when writing a PCT resume with no experience. An objective paragraph as a PCT resume introduction focuses on your career goals and patient care technician future rather than your past. However, always still provide a relevant achievement, so they can verify how talented you are.

Pro Tip: Write this intro paragraph last, whether it’s the objective or the summary, and even though it’ll be seen first by the employer. You want the best crumbs of information to head up your resume, so writing the rest first helps you come up with them more easily.

3. Create the Perfect Patient Care Technician Job Description for Resumes

You know you’d be a great patient care tech, whether it’s measuring their vital signs or assisting them in getting from point A to point B.

Now you just have to convey that to the employer.

How?

By describing past experience on a resume for PCT jobs in a way that increases their heart rate and respiration. To do it right, you should learn how to write an ideal PCT or PCA job description for your resume.

Here’s how to spruce up a patient care assistant job description resume section:

Add the latest position you held first, and then go back from there in reverse-chronological order.
Start with your professional title, then the span of time you worked, the company name and its location, and 5 or 6 bullet points describing your role.
Begin every entry with an action word to have the most impact.
Prove to them that you’re as talented as you described by using numbered accomplishments.
Always tailor your resume to one particular patient care tech job, as employers hate generic resumes.

Pro Tip: Writing a patient care technician resume with no experience? On a resume for a first job as a PCT, simply document the closest duties and responsibilities you performed which carry over and translate well to patient care tech jobs.

4. Make Your PCT Resume Education Section Shine

How to write education on your resume for PCT jobs?

It’s one of the easiest components of any patient care technician resume, but it also is easy to mess up.

Here’s how to get it right:

Like in the PCT job description, use reverse-chronological order here too, adding your most advanced degree first.
Start with the degree or major up top, then the school name, city, and state, and then the year you completed it (or expect to).
If you have some relevant classes from your college curriculum, add them!
Likewise, if you’ve earned any academic awards or honors, include them so the employer knows just how impressive you are as a candidate.

Pro Tip: Have you earned a degree after high school? If so, don’t include your high school diploma on your PCT resume. However, if you’re still finishing up, you can add it below as a second entry.

5. Highlight Your Patient Care Technician Skills on a Resume

Employment of orderlies and nursing assistants (including PCTs and HHAs) is expected to increase 11% from 2016 to 2026.

That’s 177,700 recruits added to this medical sub-field in a decade.

So—

To beat all this competition, make your patient care technician resume skills stand out by choosing the most effective ones.

Here are some great talents and abilities to add to a patient care technician skills resume section:

Patient Care Technician Skills for a Resume

Laboratory and Diagnostic Procedures
Medical Assisting & Patient Care
Medical Terminology
Medical Coding and Billing
Electronic Health Records
Disease and Pathology
Nutritional Diagnostics
Anatomy and Physiology
Patient Personal Hygiene
Friendly Emotional Support
Phlebotomy
Electrocardiogram (ECG / EKG)
Monitoring & Recording Vital Signs (heartbeat, blood pressure, body temperature, body weight, body mass index / BMI, etc.)
Accountability
Stamina & Strength
Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation
Disease Processes
Patient Cleanliness, Nutrition, and Wellness
Patient Moving and Lifting
Patient Dressing and Feeding
Effective Communication
Critical Thinking Skills
Problem Solving Skills
Interpersonal Skills
Time Management Skills

Now—

This is how to add patient care tech skills to a resume for PCT jobs:

Think up all the professional job skills you possess, including hard skills and soft skills, related to patient care jobs.
Find the best keywords for resumes by looking at the PCT job description requirements section.
If one of your keywords matches a previous PCT skill you already have, add that to your patient care resume.

Patient care skills define your job, but don't neglect other skills. We analyzed 11 million resumes made in our builder, and here are the top 10 most frequently added skills by our users:

Teamwork and Collaboration
Problem-solving
Excellent Communication
Multitasking
Attention to Detail
MS Office
Analytical and Critical Thinking
Data Entry
Project Management
Team Management

Making a resume with our builder is incredibly simple. Follow our step-by-step guide, use ready-made content tailored to your job and have a resume ready in minutes.

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When you’re done, our free resume builder will score your resume and our resume checker will tell you exactly how to make it better.

6. Include Additional Sections on the Patient Care Technician Resume

Those above core sections were necessary for any resume.

But, to show them you’re a well-rounded PCT job applicant, write a well-rounded resume by including additional sections on it.

Here are great extra sections to round out your resume:

7. Attach a Patient Care Technician Cover Letter to Your Resume

Do I need a cover letter for my resume for patient care tech jobs?

Well, if you want the job, yes.

The majority of employers expect a cover letter attached to the emailed resume.

Here are general tips for turning in a job-winning PCT cover letter:

Choose the best cover letter format prior to writing.
In the cover letter opening lines, write a compelling introduction.
Explain why your PCT skills and medical experience make you a perfect fit.
Give a few quantifiable wins to convince them you’re the best choice.
End it with a cover letter closing paragraph and a strong call to action.

Pro Tip: While preparing for an employment interview, don’t forget to send a follow up email after a job application.

Plus, a great cover letter that matches your resume will give you an advantage over other candidates. You can write it in our cover letter builder here. Here's what it may look like:

Create my cover letter now

See more cover letter templates and start writing.

Key Takeaway

Here’s a recap of how to write a perfect resume for patient care technician:

Format your resume template in reverse-chronological order.
Impress your recruiters with your education.
Include education and relevant coursework.
Add a cover letter to boost your chances of landingthe interview.

Got any questions about how to write a patient care tech resume? Need more PCT resume examples or help configuring your medical skills or healthcare achievements? Let’s talk about it below in the comments, and thanks for reading!

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