Radiology Tech - Radiology Degree Programs And Beyond
Is starting a career as a radiology tech still worth pursuing at this time? In 2008, the Bureau of Labor Statistics painted a very rosy picture for allied health care jobs, including that of diagnostic imaging workers. The rising demand for different types of radiology tech in this sector was projected to hit 17% in the next 10 years.
An aging population that would require medical attention supported these projections, coupled with continuous advancements in diagnostic technology. Local hospitals and health care facilities were said to lack skilled radiologic technologists.
As a result, schools and other educational institutions positioned themselves to meet the growing demand. Without any background on health care or radiology, you could be trained in two years and be ready to work. With a health care background, radiology tech certificate programs that can be completed within a year were also made available.
With a relatively short training period, and due to the need for skilled and competent workers, the radiology tech pay scale offered was more than attractive. High school graduates took up the challenge as did individuals who wanted to shift careers. Even with increasing enrollment in radiology tech degree programs, the supply was insufficient for the demand.
Economic Impact On Health Care Jobs
More schools cashed in on the trend. Community colleges, vocational and trade schools, as well as universities offered their own version of a radiology degree. It seemed like the projections were right on the money. Until the economy slowed down.
The economy is taking longer to recover. Meanwhile, health care reforms and insurance coverage are weighing down on operations and profitability. To survive, employers cut costs by laying off workers, or lowering wages. Yet, radiology technician schools continue to accept applicants and churn out graduates, whose employment opportunities were uncertain.
Employment issues are made worse by the growing preference for skilled applicants with experience. This left graduates wondering: how will we gain experience if nobody wants to hire us?
Success also depends on location. Demand for a radiology tech in each state and locality is different. Some will offer more opportunities, others may force professionals to seek radiology tech jobs elsewhere, including out-of-state. In the end, it is your desire and perseverance that will determine if you are meant to pursue this career.
Training Required For A Radiology Tech
Although often used interchangeably, there is a big difference between a radiologic technologist and a radiology tech. Simply put, one is a health care professional, the other is not. The technician's skills lie in repairing x-ray or radiologic equipment and they do not deal with patients at all. A technologist, on the other hand, operates the machine for diagnostic imaging and is almost always in contact with patients as they explain and go through each procedure.
When demand for a radiologic tech is mentioned, what is referred to are technologists. They are skilled individuals who are familiar with and competent in handling x-rays and other imaging equipment such as computed tomography (CT scans) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and mammography.
With a certificate program or associate degree, you become skilled at and knowledgeable in the use of x-ray machines. This includes preparing and administering solutions, like contrast dyes, necessary for the diagnostic imaging procedure. Upon completion of your course, you become a radiographer.
However, there are those who study further and specialize in some other imaging procedure. A bachelors degree in radiologic technology will train you in more than one modality and increase your market value when you seek employment, thereby increasing your potential radiology tech salary. Or you can opt to take special training courses and get certified later. Whether you choose to specialize further or not, you need to take a radiology tech certification test and obtain a radiology tech license before you can practice.
What Will I Need To Learn?
As a radiology tech, your primary responsibility is to help diagnose medical conditions. While you are not a medical professional per se, a thorough knowledge and good grasp of science, specifically anatomy and physiology are extremely important.
For one, you need to be familiar with body parts - internal and external - to help you in positioning patients for the diagnostic imaging. Whether you are using an x-ray machine or CT scan or MRI, physician's orders are specific: they want a picture of a particular part of the patient's anatomy. Any inaccuracy in the imaging process due to lack of knowledge could result to a misdiagnosis and ultimately wrong treatments.
Your curriculum will put a lot of emphasis on these two courses. Next to techniques in positioning and safety procedures, these are perhaps the most important subjects that radiology tech or technologist students have to master.
And most professionals will tell you: If there are no prerequisites for admission asked by your school, you will give yourself an advantage by learning as much as you can about anatomy and physiology even before you begin your education to obtain a radiology degree. Biology and algebra classes are also good foundations for this course, and taking up advance subjects while still in high school will go a long way in your preparation.
Are Online Radiology Tech Degree Programs Acceptable?
Yes, there are radiology technician schools online that offer an online radiology degree. But these are only for those who already hold an associate degree in radiologic technology and are currently practicing but want to earn their bachelors degree. This also means you hold credentials from the American Registry of Radiology Technologists and are pursuing further studies for advancement purposes.
While the course may cover other radiologic modalities, it will mostly focus on harnessing your skills to become a potential manager, for research or even to teach later on in your career. Whatever your future plans that pushed you to get a bachelors degree in radiologic technology, it will increase your market value and open up other and even better opportunities to earn more and take on more responsibilities.
The clinical portion of your training under an online program will supposedly be taken cared of in your place of work. And because one of the advantages of distance education is flexibility in schedules, you can either take your time in completing the course or go as fast as time will allow you.
How Do I Get Experience?
How do you address the growing concern among radiology tech graduates about lack of opportunities or being bypassed for not having experience? If you are serious about pursuing this career, then you should demonstrate that commitment early on, that is even before you begin your formal training. Volunteering has proved to work wonders for potential health care workers.
When you volunteer at a health care facility, two things can happen:
- First, you sow the seeds of your future as a radiology technologist in this very workplace. How? They will be familiar with you as a person and as a worker and when you've earned the proper credentials as a professional, it will be easier to hire someone they already know than one they have yet to learn about.
- Second, you'll discover that radiology isn't your cup of tea after all, because you would have been exposed to other areas of health care and would prefer to serve in another capacity. Either way, the experience gained from volunteering - even as little as four hours a week - would have served an invaluable purpose in your preparation for a career.
Networking is also an offshoot of volunteering. The workplace will introduce you to people in the industry, who may need your services in the future once you have become a licensed professional. Yes, the job market may be a little saturated in your area but if you've done some groundwork and gotten to know the right people, you may just beat out the competition or even have doors opened when you are ready.
The demand for truly skilled and competent workers will continue to rise. And a radiology tech with the right training, experience and commitment will always have a place in the health care industry.
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