60 Years of Stories! Lovily House
“I’m grateful for St. Louis Community College and their patient care tech job training program. I love being a PCT. I love working with kids and supporting families. Before STLCC’s program, I worked in the hospital’s cafeteria. In that job, I wasn’t really able to help people. Now that I’m a PCT, I get to have a direct impact on patients and families.”
--Lovily House, Graduate, Patient Care Technician Training Program
In 2017, Lovily House’s son spent the better part of a year at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. During that time, she learned what a patient care technician was. She remembers it was the PCTs who spent the most time with her and her son during their time in the hospital.
Unfortunately, despite the care, her son passed away in October 2017. But out of tragedy,
House found her calling.
House now works as a PCT at that same hospital. She is part of the float pool, which means she works across all the units in the hospital. House has a deep passion for this work and supports parents in a way that only someone who has been in their position can.
“I know what many of the parents are going through,” she said. “My experience, with what happened to my son, lets me feel what they are feeling. When I say, ‘I understand what you are going through,’ I truly understand what they are going through. Being on both sides, as a parent and now as a tech, I can walk that journey with my patients’ parents. I understand the parents better than anyone.”
Before her son’s hospitalization, House knew she wanted to work in healthcare. She has always had a passion for helping others in need and was drawn to the active, fast-paced environment of healthcare. Initially, she worked in the cafeteria for BJC Healthcare. But without training or an advanced degree, she couldn’t make the impact she wanted.
That all changed when House discovered the patient care technician program offered by St. Louis Community College.
“Once I learned about the training program at St. Louis Community College, I applied the first chance I got,” House said. “It was a full-time program that lasted about three months. It was at an accelerated pace. We spent time in the classroom as well as getting hands-on experience in the hospital.”
House was in a cohort with eight other people whom she remains close friends with to this day – all of them now work at hospitals in the St. Louis area.
“Coming out of the STLCC program, I moved into a career that I love. I love being a PCT,” she said. “The most important part of my job is listening. Sometimes people just need to vent. Other times, they need the nurses or doctors to know something but don’t know how to talk to them. I am the trusted person who is always there for the parents. I treat each of my patients like they’re my children.”
Now that House has worked as a PCT for three years, she is able to reflect on how the program impacted her.
“The PCT program gave me a boost up,” she said. “Because it was only a few months, it was easy to commit to. They really taught you everything you are going to need to know to be a good PCT. Plus it was affordable.”
House is now considering going back to STLCC to further her career in the healthcare field by becoming a registered nurse.
Learn more about STLCC’s patient care technician program and other accelerated job training programs.