“We’re a close-knit community. When tough things happen, I never have to face them alone. The days can be hard, but to me, it’s all worth it. I’m doing what I love most—helping others.”

Theresa Harris has been a certified nursing assistant (CNA) for more than two decades. At Children’s, CNAs can be qualified for two patient care positions—patient care specialist and patient care technician—based on experience. After a diverse career working in home health, several hospitals, and as a travel CNA during the COVID-19 pandemic, Theresa took a position as a patient care technician for the Emergency Department at Children’s Hughes Spalding Hospital, located in the heart of downtown Atlanta. One of our three hospitals serving patients from birth to age 21, Hughes Spalding is a high-volume center, with more than 90,000 patient visits and more than 57,750 Emergency Department patient visits per year.

As a patient care technician at Children’s, Theresa acts as an important member of a multidisciplinary team to organize and provide high-quality patient care services as assigned by licensed professional personnel. She assesses patient needs and is ready to jump in and assist with everything from taking vital signs and setting up electrode tests to drawing blood for lab work, placing splints and helping prepare young patients for stitches and other procedures.

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“When I was on assignment in Boston, I got to be in the emergency department with children and really loved it,” Theresa says. “To see the smiles on those babies’ faces when you’re helping them makes it all worth it.”

She is currently taking the next step in her professional career, pursuing her associate degree in nursing. But after jumping around to different roles over the years, Theresa says she’s found a home at Children’s.

“Once I graduate, I plan to stay at Hughes Spalding,” she says. “They have been great about working with me while I pursue my dream.”

A Typical Day: Patient Care Technician

7:00 a.m. Theresa’s alarm sounds, and since the weather is nice, she takes a walk to get her morning started and makes her breakfast.

8:30 a.m. She works on a school assignment, with more coffee at the ready. Her two high-school-age children don’t require too much hands-on parenting in the morning, so she can make time for a quick study session before work.

9:45 a.m. With some healthy snacks packed for the day, Theresa heads to Hughes Spalding Hospital. She works mid shift from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., usually twice a week.

10:30 a.m. Theresa makes her way to the Emergency Department, greets everyone, and checks in with the charge nurse for her assignments. She also keeps an eye on the digital board to see where she’s needed. “I’m always monitoring the board to see who needs vital signs, who is getting ready to get discharged, or who has orders I can complete,” Theresa says.

11:00 a.m. The nursing team has a quick huddle where Theresa learns she will be a preceptor for a new trainee. She’ll show the trainee how to handle patient intake today.

12:30 p.m. With her trainee shadowing her, Theresa goes about her day greeting patients and their parents and getting them prepped for the clinical staff. “It’s important to focus on connection and how you come across when you’re talking with parents,” she says. “They’re often on edge, and I try to help them feel more at ease.”

2:00 p.m. Theresa takes a minute for a quick snack. Her favorite lately: dried mangoes and trail mix. Then it’s back to the floor to help with the patient load. She keeps an eye on the board, which assigns an acuity score to each patient, letting staff know who needs care most urgently. This is important because the team can sometimes have 30 to 50 patients in the Emergency Department at one time.

4:00 p.m. Theresa sees an order come across for a patient’s electrocardiogram. She jumps in to assist, showing her trainee how to set up the electrodes. As a CNA, Theresa can help with these types of tests, as well as assist the respiratory team, draw blood for lab work, place catheters and more.

6:00 p.m. A young patient comes in with a broken arm, and his nurse immediately looks to see if Theresa is available. “I’ve been called the splint queen,” she laughs. “I’ve had a lot of practice, and many of the nurses know I have years and years of experience under my belt.”

8:00 p.m. It’s finally time for a break. After the staff from shift change get settled, Theresa heads down Piedmont Avenue to her favorite Jamaican food truck to grab the order she placed online: jerk chicken, cabbage, and macaroni and cheese. She enjoys the warm summer evening on the small patio outside the hospital cafeteria for 30 minutes before she heads back to work.

9:30 p.m. A patient with a forehead laceration arrives. Theresa takes her vitals and gets her prepped for stitches. Her patient is terrified, but Theresa helps her calm down, explaining everything she’s doing, from using the blood pressure cuff to checking her temperature. During the actual stitching, Theresa helps steady her patient, distracting her with talk of summer break.

11:00 p.m. It’s time to head home after her 12-hour shift. Theresa uses the drive home to unwind and listen to one of her favorite playlists on shuffle.

12:00 a.m. When she gets home, Theresa checks on her children, who are usually settled by this time of night. She checks in on her fiancé, who is usually in bed too, and grabs a quick shower before heading downstairs to study a little more. “It’s a hard schedule right now with school,” she says. “But I know it’s just for a season.”

3:00 a.m. After completing her assigned reading for class later that week, Theresa crawls into bed. In just a few hours, she’ll get ready for another day of helping the pediatric patients who hold her heart. But it’s not just the kids who keep Theresa at Hughes Spalding, she also loves her team. “We’re a close-knit community. When tough things happen, I never have to face them alone,” she says. “The days can be hard, but to me, it’s all worth it. I’m doing what I love most—helping others.”

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