By: Austin Mathai

What is Radiology?What is Radiology?

Radiology is the study of images of the human body.

Although Radiology began with the use of X-Rays and large flat sheets of photographic films, the modern Radiologist now has a new collection of tools for “taking pictures” of living patients.’

X-Ray’s are a form of energy, similar to radio and light waves, and unlike light it can penetrate into the body.

The X-ray’s ray can only provide pictures of internal structures, such as bones, not organs.

Types of RadiologyTypes of Radiology

Diagnostic Radiology - An area of radiology that uses external radiation to produce images of the body, its organs, and other internal structures for medical diagnostic purposes.

Nuclear Medicine - A specialized area of diagnostic radiology that uses very small amounts of radioactive materials to create an image of the body, its organ functions and structure, for diagnostic and treatment purposes.

Therapeutic Radiology (Radiation Oncology) - A specialized area of radiology that uses applications of radiant energy to study, treat, and manage cancer and other diseases.

Interventional Radiology - A specialized area of radiology that uses various imaging techniques to guide the insertion of small instruments and tools through the body to identify and treat a medical disorder without requiring conventional surgery.

ToolsTools

Some of the newer tools, thanks to modern technology, help the Radiologist perform faster and more accurate.

Some of the tools, such as Computed Tomography, use a combination of a computer and a X-Ray.

There are even tools that don’t require radiation of any kind, such as MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) or Ultrasound.

Ultrasound imaging is a common diagnostic medical procedure that uses high-frequency sound waves to produce dynamic images (sonograms) of organs, tissues, or blood flow inside the body.

Radiology TrainingRadiology Training

Upon completion of medical school and a required five year residency in internal medicine or surgery, physicians become certified and may begin advanced training in radiology.

Radiologist training consists of a hospital residency with course work and hands on training in diagnostic radiology and the physics of medical imaging.

Upon completion of diagnostic radiology residency, many radiologists choose to enter a fellowship program in a radiological sub-specialty.

Fellowship programs generally take one to two years of additional training to complete.

Radiologists are required to be board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine or Surgery before becoming a certified radiologist.

Physicians are then eligible to take the certification examination administered by the American Board of Radiology, which consists of two separate written examinations and one oral examination.

Radiologist SalaryRadiologist Salary

Overall Radiologist salaries are based on specialty, years of experience location, the type of facility, and shifts.

According to Salary.com, the current median expected salary for a Radiologist in the United States is $277,304.

InterviewInterview

I was fortunate enough to find an interview with Radiologist John Pearson.

Interview How would describe what you do?: “Radiology is using technology and a variety of imaging

techniques to look at the human body and diagnose problems.”

How long each day do you work?: “We work from 7:30 in the morning till about 5:00 at night, and other radiologists work longer hours in some places, but that’s our normal work day. And then once a week I’ll be on call for general radiology, and I usually get a call about every 15 minutes.”

How did you get started?: “I was in television before. Then at twenty-nine I decided I wanted to go to medical school.  I went into medical school thinking that I would do something more standard as far as medicine, like internal medicine, or surgery.”

What do you like about what you do?: “We interact with almost every different aspect of medicine.”

What do you dislike?: “Well, I think all physicians, and radiologists probably as much as anybody else, are unhappy about the way the control of medicine has been taken out of doctors’ hands in a lot of ways; by the government, by insurance companies, by hospitals.”

How do you make money/or how are you compensated?: “We only make money when we’re doing something. We bill for what we do, and the insurance companies, the government, and/or the patients pay us for our services. We don’t own any of the equipment.”

How much money do you make?: “I’m going to guess it would be right around $500,000 a year.” (He’s been working for 13 years)

What education or skills are needed to do this?: “Well, obviously, you have to go to medical school. You have to have a college degree to get there. So you need a four year college degree, four years in medical school, an internship, a four-year residency, and a one to two-year fellowship after that.”

What is most challenging about what you do?: “One is that if you’re highly trained at what you do, and something that I tell patients is “You don’t want your doctor to be excited, or surprised, or thrilled about what he’s doing with you.”

What is most rewarding?: “Well, it’s obviously financially rewarding, but I guess the major reward that most of us have is that we know that what we do makes a difference in people’s lives, and that if we weren’t there for them at the time that they needed us, that things wouldn’t go as well.”

What advice would you offer someone considering this career?: “Well, that would depend on what stage of life they’re in.”

How much time off do you get/take?: “Well, this year I might not get any.”

What is a common misconception people have about what you do?: Well, amongst the general public, I don’t think they have much of a clue what we do. They get a bill from us and they don’t even know who we are or what they’re paying for.

What are your goals/dreams for the future?: Well, I want to finish well. I’ve got another 12 years or so that I’m going to practice and I want to stay competent and do a good job and take good care of patients.

What else would you like people to know about what you do?: In general, medicine is reaching a crisis. The baby boomers are getting old. There’s a bunch more of them that are going to be needing healthcare. Our healthcare system is going to be drained financially and is being drained financially.

Benefits of RadiologyBenefits of Radiology

Medical or Dental Insurance Vision and Prescription

charges Short and Long-term Disability

Insurance Life Insurance Liability Insurance Retirement (Employees are

vested in the retirement plan after completion of 5 years with 1,000 hrs. worked in each plan year [July 1 - June 30].)

Generous Paid Time Off (This is based on position and length of service.)

7 Paid Holidays

Flexible Spending Accounts

Tuition Assistance Tax-deferred Annuity

Program (Employees may elect up to 20% of annual salary deferred into an annuity account.)

Direct Deposit (Automatic deposit of bi-weekly paychecks is available to all employees.)

Credit Union (A variety of banking services are available.)

The best part: The Wellness Program (This full-service program offers racquetball, squash, tennis, swimming, aerobics classes and more at low rates; individual and family memberships are available.)

Traveling RadiologyTraveling Radiology

If you're interested in a radiology job, chances are good you may be asked to travel. Many radiologists love the idea of going where they are most needed, and the chance to see the country while performing their jobs is a great benefit.

While the idea of radiology jobs based on travel certainly isn't an ideal solution, it is a quick and efficient way to make sure everyone gets the care they need regardless of where they're located.

So how does it work? Typically, a technologist who is willing to travel will be employed by an agency. The agency will put the tech in contact with various facilities, and the tech will sign a temporary contract with a hospital or clinic.

The usual length of a contract with a radiologist on a travel basis is three months. The employee will be bussed or driven to the hospital location.

All expenses for the tech are generally paid for by the hospital, and equipment is supplied on the premises.

For a radiology job involving travel, the tech may have to adjust to several factors all working at once to create a constantly changing work environment. Often, hospitals will have varying procedures and different types of equipment, so there's little knowing what to expect until the tenure at the temporary location actually begins.

FAQ’s of RadiologyFAQ’s of Radiology

Do the radiologists work for the hospital? Rarely, Usually, the radiologists do not work for the hospital, even though they work on the premises, use hospital equipment, and work with hospital-employed technologists.

Should I expect a bill from the radiologist that is separate from the hospital bill? Yes, generally the radiologist's practice is separate from the hospital, and they will bill you separately.

Can radiologists really interpret images from home? Yes. CT, ultrasound, nuclear medicine, and MR images can be transmitted from the imaging site to a computer in the home of the on-call radiologist. Very little information, if any, is lost in this transmission. X-rays are much more difficult to transmit because of the sheer quantity of information necessary (very large gray scale as compared to digital images). This technology is, however, improving rapidly.

Can I ask the radiologist to tell me what he or she thinks? The short answer to this question is "yes”.

Is the radiologist responsible for the other employees in the hospital department? No, not really. Radiologists generally do not work for the hospital and do not have any sort of control over hospital employees. However, there are long-held health-care conventions that make the radiologist the "Captain of the ship." Most radiologists accept that function.

FAQ’s of RadiologyFAQ’s of Radiology

Why do I need a radiologist in the first place? Won't my own doctor look at the pictures? Don't expect that to to happen. Some PCPs can interpret chest and abdomen x-rays, orthopedists can read bone films and so on, but there are very, very few that have become savvy with the newer modalities of ultrasound, CT, and MRI. Most don't even try.

How do I find out if the radiologist is qualified and/or skilled? There are a couple of relatively easy things you can do, like ask your primary care physician. Also, many states allow the public to view information about state-licensed physicians. This information includes a physician's training and malpractice history and is often located on an easily accessible website. Unfortunately, though, there's just not a whole lot of information out there, and you'll have to hope that a good hospital will have a good x-ray department with good radiologists. Ask around.

More InfoMore Info

Radiologic technologists also referred to as radiographers, produce x-ray films (radiographs) of parts of the human body for use in diagnosing medical problems.

They prepare patients for radiologic examinations by explaining the procedure, removing jewelry and other articles through which x rays cannot pass, and positioning patients so that the parts of the body can be appropriately radiographed.

To prevent unnecessary exposure to radiation, these workers surround the exposed area with radiation protection devices, such as lead shields, or limit the size of the x-ray beam.

Wilhelm RoentgenWilhelm Roentgen

Wilhelm Roentgen was a German physicist who lived between 1845-1923. His accidental discovery of x-rays in 1895 changed the fields of physics and medicine.

For his brilliant experimental work, Roentgen received the first Nobel Prize, in 1901.

Roentgen worked in his laboratory at the Physical Institute of the University of Würzburg, Germany, experimenting with a Crookes tube.

Crookes TubeCrookes Tube

This tube is a glass bulb with positive and negative electrodes, evacuated of air, which displays a fluorescent glow when a high voltage current is passed though it.

When he shielded the tube with heavy black cardboard, he found that a greenish fluorescent light could be seen.

More on RoentgenMore on Roentgen

He concluded that a new type of ray emitted from the tube, passed through the covering, and casted shadows of solid objects.

The rays passes through most substances, including the soft tissues of the body, but left the bones and most metals visible.

One of his earliest photographic plate from his experiments was a film of his wife, Bertha's hand with a ring, was produced on Friday, November 8, 1895.

Wife’s Hand/ RoentgenWife’s Hand/ Roentgen

Sources (Websites)Sources (Websites)

www.rad.usuhs.mil/rad/hom/whatis.html www.e-shadow.com http://radiologycareers.rad.jhmi.edu/benefits.html http://www.umm.edu/radiology/ http://www.rtstudents.com/ http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/people/

modern_era/roentgen.html http://www.ehow.com/about_4600130_why-

radiology-important.html

Sources (Books)Sources (Books)

Radiology By: Kathy Winkler Radiology Recall: By Spencer B. Gay Webster’s Third International Dictionary By:

Merriam/Webster Basic Radiology by: Michael Y.M. Chen