Work opportunities in the medical industry are typically secure jobs. The health-care industry demands a lot from people like you to provide good services to those who need it most. Likewise, advances in the medical field are constantly evolving. If you are looking for a challenging and exciting career in the medical path, why not train to be an x-ray technician?
Responsibilities of an x-ray technician
In the medical field, there is a wide array of career opportunities and becoming an x-ray technician is one of them. Also known as a radiologic technologist or radiographer, an x-ray technician is the one responsible for taking images or radiographs of the human body to help diagnose, detect, and track various medical and health conditions.
X-ray technicians are also responsible in maintaining the equipment. If you want to be a radiographer, you also need to be organized in terms of keeping the patients’ medical records up-to-date and in order. You also need to have the adequate knowledge to prepare patients for procedures, and you can do this by undergoing competitive training.
What you need to do to become an x-ray technician
Pursuing a career as an x-ray expert is very fulfilling and rewarding. To become one, you need to receive adequate training in radiography. The Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology has a full list of more than 600 radiography centers that offer training programs in the United States. You can check their website out if you need more information.
Expect a combination of clinical practice and classroom study during the training. Some of the courses that you need to complete include the following: anatomy, radiation safety, physiology, pathology, and medical terminology. During the hands-on part or the laboratory phase of your training, you will work with real patients to assess what you have learned. Of course, there will be a licensed and professional imaging specialist supervising your work.
Once you have finished your training, the next step is to get accredited. Radiation and radiography can be dangerous that is why different states have varying regulations when it comes to becoming a licensed x-ray technician. All in all, a majority of the states in the US require degree-finishers to undergo further training and to pass the state exam. There are some who might be required to renew their licenses on a yearly basis. All these things are done in order to provide quality services to patients.
For those who would like to obtain higher employment opportunities, you can specialize in specific fields of radiology such as mammography, magnetic resonance, and CT scanning. These mentioned branches of radiology will require further specialized training.
Apart from your license, you need to get a certification as well to prove that you are a full-fledged x-ray technician. You can get it from the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT). You have to get and pass the certification exam in order for you to be known as radiologist. After you earned your certification, you can take continuing education classes. The ARRT also paves the way for those who want to have additional specialties such as computed tomography, vascular, and cardiac.
There are some x-ray technicians who choose to advance their careers even more by taking more classes and training programs. These people can become radiology practitioner assistants or radiologist assistants. If you want to go for these positions, you need to strive harder to gain adequate training.
Reasons to be an x-ray technician
Apart from the challenge of becoming an x-ray technician, there are more reasons to be one.
1. Advancement in the field – One of the good things about being an x-ray technician is that you are the first to know about the newest in the field of medicine. You will gain a lot of knowledge about the latest procedures that hospitals and clinics use for their patients.
2. Demand is high – There is a high demand for x-ray technologists. This is because of the constant change and advances in the medical industry. The more that the medical field develops, the demand for experts increases as well. Having a high demand in the said field also means that you will easily land a job in it.
3. Salary – Jobs in the medical field pay well. As a matter of fact, x-ray technicians make about $30,000 to $60,000 annually. If you have added training, your position and income increases as well.