Oct
27
As a health care professional what are your expectations of a radiologic tech?
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Question: I am a radiology student and I am supposed to write a short paper on what the expectations other people in health care have of radiologic techs. So I am hoping to get a few opinions. Thanks!
3 Comments
October 27th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
As a health care professional, I expect from a radiologic tech:
* Be a well oriented in the radiologic profession he is concerned with
* knows well the diversities of exams that can be done … like a paranasal sinuses x-ray or a face down view … etc … and if don’t know, it is wise to ask rather than making a mistake that will affect the time of patients and the resources. It is never a shame to ask.
* know as much as possible what is the region of that part of the body need to be concentrated about. this should be known from the request of the doctor who need the results and if this is not clear it should be clarified by the doctor or the senior of radiology available. like the sella turcica for a case with suspected pituitary problem in need for an MRI
* know well the side effects of the contrast agents and the possible allergic reactions that can occur and how to provide a basic life support and the primary steps for the management of these cases.
* Protect the patient from the unnecessary exposure to x-rays by covering other sensitive parts of the body not needed for imaging
* update his/her knowledge in the field he/she is working in.
* protect himself/herself and other workers from unnecessary radiation exposure. we don’t want to lose a friend
* wise and careful use of the machines .. these things deserve respect
* support the patient and encourage him/her especially in some departments that the patient may feel uncomfortable like urodynamic studies and the gutter of the MRI
* be a friend to other workers or professionals… we all like to have new friends
I hope u pass your exams successfully and be a professional radiologic tech
Dr. Ammar Hadi ……………… Iraq
a Neurosurgeon
October 27th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
One of the most frustrating aspects of being a doctor is having to do everything perfectly and at the same time do everyone else’s quality control. Self monitoring your work and always trying to produce the most readable x-ray taken with the correct projection is paramount. It’s also vexing to order a simple series such as “AP and Lateral” and get back a six view series. I get this response from two places I refer patients to. If I wanted radiotherapy for my patients I would have referred them to a radiation oncologist not a diagnostic imaging center. There is a wonderful book on x-ray techniques for orthopaedics that you should have in your personal library. Contact dena@carpaltunnelrelief.net for the reference. Good luck.
October 27th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
I’ve been in charge of a division in the radiology department so I’ve been in and continue to be in contact with radiology techs all the time.
The good techs:-
- know their work very well and can adapt to different situations (eg which views to do, what is the best way to do certain views/certain modalities when the patient is not a textbook case, how to adapt what you have learnt to do what you need to do if the patient is immobiile/uncooperative etc)
- are street smart as a person
- after working a while with certain radiologists/other techs, the good tech can anticipate what their next move will be and pre-empt this
- you are always keen to learn more, and perhaps, to further your education. You see, once you are working, soon you will find that the work is repetitive and, as a result, may get boring. Working life is much longer than anyone ever expected in the first place. It is in these situations that people “look for trouble”. The way to get around this is to ensure you always find going to work interesting. One of the ways you can do this is to be involved in research – you do good for the community, you keep yourself occupied, you learn something and you are gainfully employed.
As a student, there is much to learn. After a while, it is all automated. The trick is to never fall into the automated mode and let life pass you by.
Good luck!