A radiologist technician is a person that assists the radiologist physician with the process of diagnosing a disease. They work closely to make sure that the patient gets treatment. They do this whole process of diagnosing the illness by use of X-rays and other radiations which identify the part of the body which is affected. The radiology technology takes internal pictures of soft tissues and bones. The radiologist technician main duties during the diagnosing process are to capture the image, ensuring that the image is of best quality. The best quality image is for the radiologist physician to examine and locate the actual point that the patient is suffering from.
The patient also will see the image necessitating that the radiologist technician explains the whole process to the patient. The radiologist technician explains each step to the patient to ensure best quality images are of best quality (Keir & Keir, 2008). This will make the patient comfortable and at ease. The radiologist technician ensures that the patient is safe and comfortable. After they capture the images, the radiologist technician reviews the results they obtain from the images and they give the images to the physician. The technician may also be involved in entering the results in the records of the patient. Their duties may extend to as far as maintain the equipment themselves.
The radiologist technician mostly works in hospitals, imaging centers, private offices, clinics and sometimes even in centers that are mobile. Hospitals remain leading in employing them. A professional radiologist technician works for a standard of 40 hours per week but sometimes during emergencies, they are available to offer their services.
Education
Radiologist technician undergoes continued education and training. They specialize in different fields. The fields include computed tomography, Neuroradiology, mammography, medical sonography, musculoskeletal and medical imaging. There are three options for pursuing radiology technician career. A person may start by taking a certificate course that takes one to two years. Then there is a two-year associate degree and a four-year bachelor’s degree. The schools offering the radiology technician courses ensure that their curriculum makes the student and on. This makes the students gain the experience of handling the patients well. The radiologist technician needs to have good communication skills and have careful attention to procedures. The school exposes them to many practices (Research and Education Association, 1997). The radiologists must have cultural sensitivity, empathy and high ethical standards. After completing education, the technician must get certification. A body that knows the standards of radiology does the certification. American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) does the certification in America.
Salaries
According to the US Bureau of labor statistics, the current annual wage of a radiologist technician is $54,340. Diagnostic and medical laboratories pay the highest salaries ranging from $42,000 to $74,000. The individuals that have licenses to handle the sophisticated equipment’s in the radiology field earn more compared to others that do not have the experience and education. The salaries also vary with the geographical location. Other locations that do not have the technicians pay more than the locations that have the technicians. The type of employment also determines the salary the radiology technician will get.
References
Keir, L, & Keir, L. (2008). Medical assisting: Administrative and clinical competencies. Clifton Park, NY: Thomson Delmar Learning.
Research and Education Association. (1997). The authoritative guide-- careers for the year 2000 and beyond: Everything you need to know to find the right career. Piscataway, N.J: Research & Education Association.
