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8th November 2009
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RMIT University, Victoria.
There are four elements of my job that I love. I love working in a hospital environment spending time with patients and being able to assist in their medical care. I also enjoy working as part of a team, both the medical imaging team, and also part of the greater healthcare team involved in the diagnosis and treatment of patients. The detective element of the job – trying to find the answer to clinical questions – fascinates me and I also enjoy the application of scientific knowledge in an art form.
One of the most challenging and difficult roles of a radiographer’s job is to apply the scientific knowledge of the production and interactions of radiation with matter and anatomical and physiological knowledge, to the examination of a wide variety of patients and to produce images that tell a story about the patients current state of health. I like to think of radiographers as anatomical and physiological detectives who provide the answer to a clinical question in a standard format.
In the past 12 months I have shifted from a clinical and teaching role to an administrative role in radiography, having taken up the position as the professional officer for education, development and standards for the Australian Institute of Radiography (AIR). One of my roles in this job is in the development and promotion of professional development opportunities for radiographers and radiation therapists throughout Australia.
Whilst my direct patient contact has been significantly reduced to one shift a fortnight at my local hospital, I would like to think that I actually help patients indirectly everyday though enhancement of the knowledge and skills of Australian radiographers and radiation therapists which directly improve patient care.
I was taken for a helicopter ride over the 12 Apostles (a natural Australian wonder) as a thank you present from a patient following his recovery from a major motorbike accident. I had been the first person to the accident scene out the front of my house. I then spent nearly two hours x-raying and CT scanning the patient as the on-call radiographer. We struck up a great friendship during his recovery and are still friends to this day.
I would not like to make any changes to my working life, I enjoy my new role in the radiography profession and I am very glad that I am able to balance this with my passion for clinical practice.
No, I have never worked as a radiographer outside Australia, but I would like to one day work and teach in some of our planet’s struggling nations.
Being a radiographer is a wonderful career for people who like helping people, working as part of a team, working with technology and lateral thinking. You may be required to work shifts and undertake on-call responsibilities so be prepared for the challenges, but also enjoy the ability to go shopping, to the beach and out to lunch before you begin work.
If you are interested in radiography as a career you should contact your local hospital or national radiography professional body for advice on the study requirements in your country.
I would like to see radiographers enhance their role in the multidisciplinary health team to include an advisory role as ‘medical imaging specialists’. Assisting medical practitioners with the selection of the most appropriate imaging examinations for patients, their advice would be valued and based on the radiographer’s knowledge of anatomy and physiology, patient limitations, radiation dose and answering a clinical question. They would also be the professional responsible for providing interim reporting in remote locations and in out of hours situations.
