How Can I Become an Echocardiogram Technician?

Research what it takes to become an echocardiogram technician. Learn about job responsibilities, educational requirements, certification and job outlook to find out if this is the career for you.

What Is an Echocardiogram Technician?

An echocardiogram technician is a specialized type of cardiovascular technologist. These professionals are experts at running echocardiogram (EKG) tests, which use sound waves to construct a sonogram of a patient's heart. Before the procedure, they consult with the patient to discuss medical history and answer any questions that might arise. Then, they attach the patient to the machine and operate the equipment to conduct the test, which can be run while the patient is exercising or at rest. Afterward, they may be responsible for conducting a basic analysis and presenting a summary of the results to the ordering physicians.

The table below shows you what you might want to know about becoming an echocardiogram technician.

Degree Required	Certificate or associate's degree
Education Field of Study	Echocardiography
Key Skills	Performing tests, evaluating results, consulting with cardiologists
Licensure Required	Certification not required, but preferred by many employers
Job Growth (2020-2030)	8% for all cardiovascular technologists and technicians*
Average Salary (2020)	$60,940 for all cardiovascular technologists and technicians*

Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

What Training Do I Need to Become an Echocardiogram Technician?

Certificate and associate's degree programs in echocardiography prepare you to become proficient with the skills necessary for entry-level positions and licensure. In an echocardiography program, you can learn how to acquire accurate images of the heart's anatomy and function. You'll gain hands-on experience working in a hospital or clinic helping physicians identify and treat diseases of the heart and blood vessels. You might learn about terminology, anatomy, physiology, instrumentation and physics. Common courses in these programs include congenital heart diseases, cardiac abnormalities, cardiovascular skills and the physics of ultrasound.

How Do I Become Certified?

Certification bodies provide an unbiased assessment of your skills as an echocardiogram technician, and certification could be required by some employers, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov). The American Registry of Diagnostic Medical Sonographers (ARDMS) offers credentials in this field. After completing a training program, you can take the ARDMS examination on the subjects of sonography principles and instrumentation to become a Registered Diagnostic Cardiac Sonographer. You can also specialize in adult, pediatric or fetal echocardiography, which require separate examinations.

What Job Duties Could I Have?

Echocardiography is a specialty within the area of diagnostic medical ultrasound. You would use ultrasound technology to form a 2-dimensional or 3-dimensional moving image of a section of the heart. Your job duties could include interpreting results, consulting with a cardiologist, obtaining patient history and assisting physicians with patient treatment methods.

To perform an echocardiogram, you would move a transducer across the patient's chest so that the high-frequency sound waves echo off of the heart to the transducer. You can expect to spend 45 minutes to an hour performing each procedure. Other types of tests that you might perform include stress and dobutamine echocardiograms, pacing echocardiograms and transesophageal echocardiograms.

What Are Some Related Alternative Careers?

You can find a few other career tracks within the field of cardiac technology. For instance, you could get a job as a cardiac sonographer, using ultrasound equipment to take images of a patient's heart, or you could become a cardiac catheterization technologist if you want to conduct invasive procedures. Outside of the field of cardiac technology, you could consider a job as a radiologic or MRI technologist. These professionals use radiation equipment such as X-ray machines and MRI scanners to create images that can be used to diagnose a wide range of injuries and diseases. To get a job as a technologist, you usually need an associate's degree.