How to Become a Radiologic Technologist

There is a lot of misinformation going around the internet about what we do... and unfortunately, there are a lot of people looking to make money off of individuals who would like to become Radiologic Technologists, but may not know the difference between that and a "x-ray technician" or simply an "x-ray tech."

I subscribe to google alerts for "radiography", and this morning I received this link:  http://www.stridemagazine.com/what-is-the-yearly-salary-of-the-radiologist#comment-3346

It's not the first link that I have come across with loads of inaccurate information.  Its title reads, "what is the yearly salary of a Radiologist?"  As we know, a Radiologist is a Physician, but the article goes on to describe (mostly incorrectly) how to become either a Radiologic Technologist or a Limited Licensed Technician, unable to distinguish the two.

Let me just say that if you are currently in, or have graduated from a JRCERT - accredited x-ray program, possessing ARRT Registry, you went about it the proper way.  There are many schools popping up claiming to provide you the education to "be an x-ray tech" but lack the proper accreditation.  This infuriates me to no end.  I have met several students who found out they were not qualified to work in a hospital setting only after they paid a hefty $20k to one of these programs, and ended up enrolling in their local Community College program later.

As far as I know, there is no law against these schools doing this, but there is such a thing as false advertising.  Many schools come very close to this, and will tell you (verbally - not in writing) that you will be qualified to work in any hospital after completing their program.

I am writing this post specifically as a word of caution to those who are seeking to be Technologists, as well as to offer any assistance to those who would like to ask any questions about the process.  It is important to educate yourselves prior to enlisting in any school, and to know your options.  I am currently writing a book on the subject due to the massive amount of misinformation that is going around about it, but it will not be complete and/or published at least for another 6-8 months.  You shouldn't have to wait for this basic information though... let alone pay $20k to find out the hard way that the education you received is inadequate.  You should also be wary of the job market in your area for Technologists right now.  It's pretty tight, although the next 3-5 years are expected to really pick up due to the Baby Boomer generation retiring (which makes up the largest percentage of the work force in health care).  Please feel free to post questions here, or send me an email if you do not want your questions addressed publicly.

If you do not trust me as a source of information, you can go to www.jrcert.org where there is a database of Radiography schools searchable by state.  The contact information for each Radiography Program Director is there.  You can email or call them to find out how you can attend an information session, or get additional info on the program you are considering, but they MUST be listed on this website.

Tech Tips: Patient Identification

The number one patient safety goal in the country is proper identification of patients.  There have been many unnecessary procedures and/or surgeries performed on patients over the years that should have been prevented because one or more members of the health care team either neglected to, or were afraid to check the patient’s ID.

About 8 years ago, I performed an x-ray series on the wrong patient, and I will never do it again.  I was at an outpatient imaging center (where no wrist bands were worn).  I called the patient’s name, and an elderly woman stood up and followed me toward the x-ray room.  We were busy, so I didn’t bother asking for a date of birth because my paperwork said 80 years old, and she looked “about” that age.  BIG MISTAKE!!!  About one hour later, a patient with the same name inquired how long it would be from the front desk receptionist.  You can imagine the confusion that followed when I informed the receptionist that I already performed the x-rays on that patient.  After a considerable amount of time was spent sorting it out, I felt horrible because no one could identify the patient who I actually x-rayed (and who left an hour ago).  Being busy is no excuse!  Please learn from my mistake and verify name and date of birth in an outpatient setting with no wrist-bands.

I have heard exponentially worse stories of surgical teams who suspected that they were operating on the wrong patient, but were afraid to say anything because of a Physician’s demeanor.  Remember, you are the patient advocate just like everyone else on the health care team.  You can still check a wrist-band without making a big production, and you MUST inform the Physician if there is a discrepancy.  It’s not only the Physician that is liable, but every member of the health care team who came in contact with the patient, and should have confirmed ID.

You should always check the patient wrist-band in a hospital setting.  Two identifiers are required, but I suggest that three should be verified by all Technologists:  Patient name, date of birth, and medical record number.  If it is an outpatient, simply look at their wrist band while in the waiting room, and wait until you are behind closed doors to verbally verify ID.  Inpatients can be visibly checked in the hallway while waiting for an x-ray room to become available, but should also be verbally verified once in the exam room.  Please remember to protect their privacy.

It’s hard to admit that you have done something wrong, and sometimes it can be very painful, but no one will benefit from a mistake unless the error can be identified and steps are made to further prevent the same error in the future.

The Author's Paradigm

I'm sorry for my recent absence from the blogosphere... I have begun work on my own radiography book that has taken up quite a bit of my time.  I have this problem where I get really excited about a particular activity or project and I tend to spend all of my time and energy on that one thing.  This can be a great attribute when you are being paid to perform that task for an employer, but it can also make regular activities (like eating, sleeping, blogging, etc.) take a back seat, and for that, I apologize.

I definitely have some great posts coming up soon as I have gathered some new ideas.  I will be teaching a new group of students starting at the end of this month, and I would like to have more of the math tutorial videos for sample problems posted as examples to refer to for that group, as well as anyone else who needs to see some worked out.

As always, please feel free to shoot over topic suggestions, of if there is a particular discussion you would like to see among Radiographers or Radiography Students, please let me know.  Thank you for your patience!

Are There Too Many Radiography Grads?

There is quite the controversial discussion going on around town.  I have heard complaints from several students across the country, some of my own students, technologists in the hospitals and imaging centers, and even online in Radiology forums about how many new grads there are in the Radiologic Sciences Programs when there are "so few jobs" out there.  I have heard comments like, "the schools are saturating the job market" and "it all comes down to greed with college administrators."  I have even heard allegations that the hospitals pay off the schools to have students there, and vice-versa in a conspiracy to keep technologists who are already employed stuck in their current positions.  I think it's time to set the record straight on a few things.

I have never heard of any hospital or school having financial gain for their professional contracts.  That would be a huge conflict of interest.  To be perfectly realistic, there are some schools that don't look at the job market saturation and fill the seats in the classrooms with the motive of greed... but I think this is probably less than 1% of the cases in the United States.  The problems that hospitals and schools are facing on an administrative level has to do with a couple of things:  The upcoming surge of baby boomers retiring and the reduction in medicare reimbursement.

Baby boomers were born anywhere between 1946 and 1964, which means that by 2011, the first boomers will have reached age 65 - retirement age.  Unlike the last three decades, the healthcare field has made an effort to try to anticipate this reduction in work force, since the boomers make up the largest population of any age group in most hospitals.  They also make up most of the executive and administrative bodies.  Once they start retiring, there's going to be a large need for qualified employees to fill their shoes.  Also, the number of geriatric patients is expected to increase exponentially with this change.

How do the proactive efforts of the hospital systems contribute to increased graduates?  Well, most schools (typically community colleges) have a symbiotic relationship with the hospitals in their area.  For Radiography programs, there needs to be enough technologists to take on students, and there needs to be enough jobs when the students graduate in order to employ 75% of all new grads within 6 months of exiting their respective programs (JRCERT requirement).  The hospital administrators regularly communicate with college administrators to determine exactly how many graduates should be pumped out annually.

This all sounds great in theory... here's the problem.  More and more people are continuing to work into and beyond the traditional retirement age.  People are unsure about social security payout, and with the economy the way it is, a lot of people have lost money on their stocks, 401k's and other investments; basically, a lot of people cannot afford to retire yet.  The efforts made between the hospitals and schools are valiant and I commend those institutions that have been proactive, but these efforts relied upon information that was incomplete at the time.  Preparation for this scenario was started years ago and some of the variables have changed.

I have no doubts that this was a wise move, but it was conducted a few years too early.  Unfortunately, our market is rather saturated at the moment.  Those who do find jobs out of school are settling for undesirable positions as casuals for multiple employers and usually second or third shifts, weekends, and holidays.  Those unwilling to take these shifts or relocate are not able to find work.

The reduction in medicare reimbursement is a wild card.  It could serve to increase or decrease the demand for technologists... I happen to believe it will increase it.  One could argue that the more expensive studies like CT or MRI will not have the same reimbursement rate after reform officially kicks in.  Less expensive exams like diagnostic x-ray will increase in number, and reimbursement is more likely to be paid for the cheaper studies.  This may bring back additional volume to gen rad departments and take some volume away from advanced modalities.  Even if advanced studies are ordered, x-rays will probably have to be done first in order to show prudence that the cheaper study was attempted and found unsuitable to diagnose adequately.

Now is an awkward time for those who just graduated from a Radiography program.  I truly believe that the market saturation problem will slowly diminish over the next 5 years or so.  Now is the time to accept those unfavorable shifts and positions that require sacrifices that you might not have anticipated.  Get your foot in the door.  It will definitely pay off when the slump goes away and the more desirable positions need to be filled.  It's very competitive out there right now, but there will soon be room to grow and you will be thankful that you persevered through this difficult time.

Continuing Education Courses

I've been tossing around the idea of creating continuing education courses to place on this blog, but before I get carried away, I'd like your opinion... In the side-bar, I have placed a poll asking if my readers would like to see CEU's offered on my blog.  I would appreciate it if my readers would take the poll to give me an idea of whether or not the courses would be well-received here.

Any time I have seen CE credits offered on a website, it seems to be in one format only.  If you answer "yes" in the poll, and if you could spare a minute, please let me know what kinds of formats you would be interested in.  If this all works out, I would like to offer multiple formats, but I want to make sure it's something that my readers would appreciate.  Also, if you feel so inclined, I would like to know what kinds of topics you would be interested in, as well as if you would be more likely to recommend this site to a fellow Technologist.

Of course, I would probably start out offering courses slowly into 2012, and would more than likely do a one or two unit free CEU course to kick it all off just to see what kind of response I get.  Thanks in advance for your input!

Rheese View for Orbits

Sorry about the length of time between my posts.  Lately I've been pretty busy with work, but I've been wanting to do a video on the Rheese view for some time.  I used a google chrome app called biodigital human.  Hope you enjoy:

Looking for a Bachelors of Science in Radiologic Science?

There are a lot more options to acquire a BSRS degree today than ever before.  One of those increasingly popular options is an online program.  I had an opportunity to interview Nancy Daugherty, MA, RT(R), the BSRS Program Director from PIMA Medical Institute with some important questions you may want to research if you are thinking about continuing your education:

Who is eligible to enroll in the BSRS program at Pima Medical Institute?

Students can transfer into the BSRS from most U.S. Radiography programs, both certificate and degree. Admission to the program requires that an applicant hold a registration by the ARRT and currently employed in radiography, or if not currently employed in the field, graduated from a radiography program within the last five years.  Applicants will need to have completed a total of 70 semester credits of specific coursework at the postsecondary level. The content of these 70 transfer credits shall consist of 15 general education credits and 55 radiography technical credits. Additional transfer credit may be accepted as determined on an individual basis by the campus director and program director. Pima Medical Institute has additional online radiography courses for applicants not transferring 70 credits. 

How long is the program?

The B.S. Radiologic Sciences program consists of 60 weeks of content, or 70 weeks including semester breaks. Students can Fast Track the program by receiving up to eighteen optional transfer credit for general education courses. Individual completion time may vary by student depending on individual progress and credits transferred.

What methods of instruction are used?

Pima Medical Institute’s online radiography course programs are taught online allowing for schedule flexibility to help students balance school, family, work and other personal commitments. These programs feature a rigorous curriculum and dedicated instructors and staff. Each online class is led by an instructor, and you will be part of a virtual class of other students. The courses are varied with different types of activities, quizzes, assignments and discussions to enhance the learning experience.

Is there any travel involved?

None at all.  The program can be completed 100% online.

What is tuition for the B.S. Radiologic Sciences program?

$250.00 per credit hour.

How many students are selected for each class, and how often are classes started?

We have chosen to keep our classes small and limited to 25 students. A new program begins each January, May and August.

What is unique about the B.S. Radiologic Sciences program at Pima Medical Institute?

I think it is the personal touch we try to provide to each student. Each enrolled student receives a one-on-one phone conference with the Program Director and the Financial Aid Advisor to answer any questions about the program.  I tell the students all the time to feel free to contact me with any questions.  I like to say I have an open door policy; even ONLINE.

What kinds of jobs have some of the graduates of the B.S. Radiologic Sciences acquired?

Our graduates are working in Medical Imaging as managers, technologists and medical sales representatives.

What are the advantages to obtaining a Bachelor’s of Radiologic Science?

Today it is almost a requirement to hold a BS degree for advancement. 

Who accredits the B.S. Radiologic Sciences program?

The program is accredited through Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES)

Can classes count toward a Master’s Degree at a later time?

Yes. We currently have articulation agreements with Chadron State College and University of Phoenix. Students can contact other colleges to see if they will accept these classes towards a Master’s.

Can the program be completed while working a full-time job?

Yes.  Most of our students are working full time while completing the program. The semesters are set up in a 2 + 2 format so they take 2 classes at a time. Only the last course, the Professional Capstone is 15 weeks in length.

What does Pima Medical Institute do to remain competitive with other B.S. Radiologic Sciences programs?

What sets PMI apart from other B.S. Radiologic Sciences programs is one-on-one rapport that we build with our students as well as our curriculum. PMI has an instructional design team that works alongside subject matter experts to create online courses that captivate and engage.

Is there a Master’s Degree program in the future for Pima Medical Institute?

There are no current plans for this right now, but watch out! Anything could happen.

For more information or to inquire about enrollment, please visit www.pmi.edu