First Post
In what kind of setting do you practice? Please describe what it's like working in that kind of setting.
I work in an off-site freestanding facility that is part of a larger hospital system. I am responsible for two centers. One located about three miles from the hospital and another about 25 miles south of Bloomington.
We're fortunate to have the support of many people within the hospital. Within the last two years, we have been able to update our equipment to the latest technology – including on-board imagers. I have a great staff that has enthusiastically tackled the new technology and IGRT to the point that we're routinely performing cone beam CTs.
How/why did you get into your particular field?
I had a high school friend who had gone in to radiography, and I thought it was interesting. I applied and was accepted, but during one rotation I spent time in radiation therapy and felt immediately drawn to the patients and the technology.
What are your greatest professional accomplishments thus far?
Although the position I have is a tangible accomplishment, I feel the great accomplishment I have achieved is being able to use the position to guide and mentor my staff and students. Also, I would have to say my appointment to the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists Board of Trustees, as it is reflective, I believe, of my cumulative experience in the field.
What are your professional goals for the future?
Ultimately, I am hoping to someday oversee a comprehensive cancer center.
I am still most proud of that accomplishment.
Presently I work two jobs: one as a director of a Nuclear Medicine department and another as a fee basis Ultrasound tech.
After spending 13 years in the corrections field as a case manager in a regional jail, I decided to explore a new career. A friend of mine was an R.T. and I thought her job sounded very interesting.
I completed both my Associate degree in Radiologic Technology and my B.S. in Health Care Adminstration while working and raising a family. I also received the Siemens Clinical Advancement Scholarship which helped me complete my B.S.
I would like to manage a radiology department someday.
Hard work and dedication usually are suppose to pay off. But I have found sometimes with the greatest effort to make a difference one can become disheartened.
Therapy for me was fulfilling. It made me appreciate life that much more, great and small. I endeavor to find another way to make a difference adsent from hospital politics and such.
Although, with some wonderful experiences in the field and amongst the thousands of patients I've had a hand in helping make life changes, it is with no regret I lay down my SHARPIE.
I wish the best to all out there looking to make a difference in the world we are destine to live in.
I know that I am not the type to do work in Therapy, so I'm glad there are people such as you out there.
I have been a radiologic technologist also for 9 years, and got into this exact program that I teach for because I needed a short degree that I could finish (not too expensive) and still care for my infant daughter at the time. I realized later into the program and throughout the past 10 years, that God had pointed me in the right direction, because I finally feel like I've found my "niche"!
My greatest accomplishment personally has been finishing my bachelors degree while working full time, being married, and raising two kids! I also feel a sense of accomplishment each June when we graduate our students, and see them go out into the world, hopefully to make it a better place.
I hope, in the future, to complete a masters degree and to continue to be an asset to myself and my students. I strive to be an AWESOME teacher!