Cardiovascular technologist screening questions: RCIS, RCES and ARRT CI, cath lab roles, hemodynamics and call
On this page
Cardiovascular technologist screening questions should start by pinning down which lab the job is in (invasive cath lab, electrophysiology, or noninvasive echo and vascular), then confirm the matching credential, the roles the candidate has actually worked (scrub, circulate, monitor or record), hemodynamic and rhythm knowledge, radiation safety habits and the call schedule. As of October 2026, the common invasive credentials are CCI's RCIS for the cath lab and RCES for electrophysiology, with ARRT's Cardiac Interventional Radiography for radiographers. The lab type decides which of these matters.
Noninvasive roles have their own pages: echo and vascular sonographers are covered in the ultrasound technician screening questions (RDCS, RCS, RVT, RVS and the sonographer licensure states), and resting EKG, Holter and stress test techs in the EKG technician screening questions. This page is for the cath lab and EP lab.
Which cardiovascular job is it?
| Lab | What the technologist does | Credential most clients look for | Ask the candidate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diagnostic and interventional cath lab | Scrubs, circulates and monitors for heart catheterizations, coronary interventions, sometimes structural heart cases | RCIS (CCI) or ARRT Cardiac Interventional Radiography | "In a typical week, what share of cases did you scrub, circulate and monitor?" |
| Electrophysiology lab | Recording and stimulation, mapping systems, ablations, device implants | RCES (CCI) | "Which mapping system did you run, and did you drive the stimulator?" |
| Peripheral or vascular interventional | Peripheral angiography and interventions, sometimes in radiology | RCIS, or ARRT Vascular Interventional Radiography | "Which peripheral procedures did you scrub most?" |
| Noninvasive echo or vascular | Ultrasound imaging | RDCS, RCS, RVT, RVS (see the ultrasound page) | Use the ultrasound screen instead. |
Which credentials and state rules to check
As of October 2026. We checked these on CCI's, ARRT's and Florida's own pages. Which credential is required is usually the employer's decision; state radiation laws decide who may operate fluoroscopy. Ask the client both before you screen.
| Credential | Issuer | Eligibility summary |
|---|---|---|
| RCIS, Registered Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist | CCI | High school diploma or GED plus one route: an accredited invasive cardiovascular program; a non-accredited program with at least one year of specialty training and 800 clinical hours; or a health science program graduate with one year of full-time invasive work and 600 cardiac diagnostic or interventional procedures. 170 questions (150 scored) in three hours. No continuing education units at the first renewal, then 36 per three-year cycle. |
| RCES, Registered Cardiac Electrophysiology Specialist | CCI | Two years of full-time work in diagnostic and therapeutic electrophysiology; or a health science credential plus one year of full-time EP work after graduation; or an accredited EP program; or a non-accredited EP program with a year of training and 800 clinical hours. 170 questions in three hours. |
| Cardiac Interventional Radiography | ARRT | A postprimary credential: requires an ARRT credential in an approved supporting discipline, plus structured education, clinical experience and the exam. |
| Vascular Interventional Radiography | ARRT | Postprimary credential for vascular interventional work, on the same supporting-credential model. |
Verify CCI credentials in CCI's public certificant lookup, and ARRT credentials in ARRT's own verification search.
State radiation laws: a Florida example
Florida's section 468.302 says a person may not use radiation on a human being unless they are a licensed practitioner or a certificate holder working under a licensed practitioner's supervision. Subsection (6)(c) exempts a person trained and skilled in cardiopulmonary technology who provides cardiopulmonary technology services under the direction and direct supervision of a licensed practitioner. Other states draw these lines differently, so ask the client how its state treats cath lab staff who are not radiographers, and whether it needs a state radiologic license or permit from the candidate. The radiology technologist screening questions explain ARRT and state licensing for radiographers.
Knockout questions
| Question | Strong answer | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Which lab have you worked in most recently, and for how long? | Cath, EP or peripheral, with months and the hospital. | Noninvasive only, for a cath lab order. |
| 2. Which credential do you hold (RCIS, RCES, ARRT CI or VI), and when does it expire? | Names it with an expiry you can verify, or is registry-eligible with an exam date if the client accepts that. | Says "registered" with no credential name. |
| 3. The role takes call with a [X-minute] response time. Can you live within that distance and take [number] calls a month? | A clear yes, with the drive time. | Lives too far away and has not thought about it. |
| 4. Is your BLS or ACLS current, as the client requires? | Card and expiry. | Expired. |
Cath lab role and hemodynamics questions
-
"As the monitor or recorder, what are you watching during a heart catheterization?"
- Strong answer: rhythm and ST changes, pressures and waveforms through the case, oxygen saturation, sedation-related changes, documentation of times, medications and catheter changes, and speaking up when something changes.
- Red flags: only "I write down what they say."
-
"A pressure waveform suddenly looks damped. What do you check?"
- Strong answer: air or clot in the line, kinked tubing, catheter position against a wall, transducer level and zero, and tells the physician.
- Red flags: records the number anyway.
-
"Scrubbing a coronary intervention, what do you prepare and hand off?"
- Strong answer: sterile table setup, manifold and contrast, wires, balloons and stents to the physician's request with sizes read back, keeps the field and wires controlled.
- Red flags: cannot describe the table or how equipment sizes are confirmed.
-
"An emergency heart attack call comes in at 2 a.m. What is your part from the page to the first image?"
- Strong answer: responds within the required time, opens and sets up the room with the team, prepares the patient and equipment, knows who brings what.
- Red flags: describes arriving long after the required time as normal.
-
"How did your lab handle access-site care after the case?"
- Strong answer: knows whether techs pulled sheaths or held pressure in their state and lab, which closure devices they used, and what bleeding or loss of pulse they escalated.
- Red flags: pulls sheaths in a lab or state where that is not their role.
Radiation safety and EP questions
| Question | Strong answer | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| How do you protect yourself and the patient from radiation in the lab? | Lead apron, thyroid shield and eyewear, shields in place, distance, wears dosimeter badges where required, minimizes fluoro time and frames, watches the dose readout. | Does not wear a badge, or has never looked at dose. |
| A patient gets hives and wheezing after contrast. What do you do? | Tells the physician and nurse at once, gets the emergency drugs and airway support as the team directs, documents. | Keeps recording. |
| EP: which mapping and recording systems have you run? | Names them and what they did: building maps, managing catheters on screen, recording intervals. | "I watched the rep run it." |
| EP: have you run the stimulator for programmed stimulation? | Yes, under the physician's direction, with the protocols they used. | Claims to decide the protocol themselves. |
| EP: what is your part in a pacemaker or defibrillator implant? | Scrubs or tests leads under direction, knows who ran the device programmer in their lab, documents the lead measurements. | No idea who measured the leads. |
How cardiovascular experience gets overstated
- Noninvasive as invasive. Echo or EKG work in a cardiology department described as cath lab experience.
- Monitoring only. Years as the recorder, presented as a technologist who scrubs complex interventions.
- "Structural heart" that was observing a few cases.
- EP from device clinics. Interrogating devices in clinic is not the EP lab.
- Credential pending described as held. Check CCI or ARRT.
A 15-minute phone-screen flow
- Minutes 0 to 2: lab type, case mix and call requirements.
- Minutes 2 to 5: knockouts; credential and expiry for verification; drive time for call.
- Minutes 5 to 11: role split, two hemodynamic or scrub questions, one radiation safety question; EP questions for EP orders.
- Minutes 11 to 15: emergency call example, state radiation rules if relevant, pay expectations and next steps.
Scoring
Pass or fail
- Recent experience in the same lab type.
- The credential the client requires, verified, or registry-eligible if accepted.
- Meets the call response time and call frequency.
- Life support cards current.
Scored 0 to 2 each (10 possible)
- Role depth: scrub, circulate and monitor.
- Hemodynamics and rhythm recognition.
- Radiation safety habits.
- Emergencies: contrast reactions, complications, call cases.
- Scope awareness for the client's state and lab.
Ask about lifting and standing in lead for long cases as job functions, with or without accommodation, not about health or pregnancy (illegal interview questions). Credential numbers, call distances and role splits blur together across a day of calls; Interview Signal keeps the transcript on your computer and the must-ask credential questions pinned until asked, so your submittal carries each candidate's own answers.
Questions people ask
What is the RCIS credential?
The Registered Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist is Cardiovascular Credentialing International's credential for cath lab technologists. As of October 2026, CCI lists three routes: an accredited invasive cardiovascular program, a non-accredited program with a year of specialty training and 800 clinical hours, or graduation from a health science program plus a year of full-time invasive work and 600 procedures. The exam has 170 questions over three hours.
Which credential do EP lab technologists hold?
Cardiovascular Credentialing International's Registered Cardiac Electrophysiology Specialist (RCES). CCI's routes include two years of full-time electrophysiology work, a health science credential plus one year of EP work, or an EP training program. Each employer decides which credentials it accepts for the EP lab, so ask the client before you screen.
Can a cardiovascular technologist operate the fluoroscopy equipment?
It depends on the state. Florida's law, for example, bars using radiation on a person unless the user is a licensed practitioner or a certificate holder under supervision, but exempts people trained in cardiopulmonary technology who provide those services under a licensed practitioner's direction and direct supervision. Ask the client how its state treats non-radiographer cath lab staff.
How do I verify a CCI credential?
Cardiovascular Credentialing International has a public certificant lookup linked from the Verify item on its website. Check the credential, its status and expiration before you submit the candidate, and check ARRT's own verification for any ARRT credential.