The Job Market for Technologists

What’s the job market like for diagnostic imaging technologists these days? Each year, Med Travelers, Irving, Texas, conducts a survey to shed some light on this question and on other developments in imaging technologist staffing. Because we are a temporary imaging technologist staffing firm, we look specifically at the job market for temporary (i.e., “traveling”) techs.

Often, however, the job market for temporary techs reflects trends in the job market for permanent techs. Our 2008 Survey of Temporary Imaging Technologist Staffing Trends is, therefore, a good place to start a discussion about the imaging tech job market.

From the Mouths of Employers

In Part I of our survey, we asked managers of 229 imaging departments and radiology groups nationwide about their current use of traveling technologists. Forty-one percent of those surveyed indicated that their facilities had used traveling techs sometime in the last 12 months to supplement their permanent staffs.

This represents a significant drop-off from the previous year, when 80 percent of those surveyed said they had used traveling techs sometime in the last 12 months to supplement their permanent staffs. The decline in the number of hospitals and groups using traveling techs underlines a key trend – demand for traveling techs, in general, is down, relative to the recent past.

This trend is reinforced by another survey finding. When asked if they are currently seeking traveling techs to supplement their staffs, only 5 percent of those surveyed said “yes”. The previous year, 12 percent of those surveyed answered “yes” to this question, and the year before that, 25 percent answered “yes”.

When employers do not need as many travelers, it is a clear sign that their permanent staffs are full and capable of filling most shifts. Indeed, department and medical group managers surveyed said the main reasons they use travelers is to fill in losses to their permanent staffs and to maintain services while they seek permanent techs.    

Supply and Demand

What accounts for this tightening job market?  Well, it certainly cannot be attributed to a reduction in demand for imaging services. According to research firm Arlington Medical Resources (AMR), the number of X-ray procedures in the United States increased by 22 percent from 2000 to 2004, while CT procedures increased by 62 percent, MRI procedures by 60 percent, and ultrasound procedures by 32 percent in the same timeframe.

As imaging technology proliferates and opens possibilities for more noninterventional procedures, demand can only be expected to increase. Aging patient demographics will also drive demand, as will the emphasis the U.S. health system places on defensive medicine. Imaging has become increasingly pervasive in healthcare, and it is no exaggeration to say that virtually nothing of consequence takes place in medicine today without a picture.

To modify an old advertising tag line: “Imaging is everything;” a statement of truth in reflection of the survey, one that bodes well for imaging’s importance in healthcare. When asked where they see demand for imaging technologists going, 46 percent of those surveyed indicated they see demand increasing in the next one to three years, while only 11 percent said they see demand decreasing – the remainder said demand would either stay the same or they did not know. Again, an increased demand for traveling techs suggests that many openings will be available for techs seeking permanent positions.

Currently, however, you have to look at the supply side of the equation to understand why the job market for techs has lost some momentum. Imaging technologist training programs have done a good job of keeping up with demand – at least until recently. Enrollment in radiography training programs increased significantly from 1999 to 2005.

In 1999, approximately 11,000 new enrollees entered radiography training programs, according to the American Society of Radiologic Technologists (ASRT). By 2005, that number had grown to 16,274, an increase of 48 percent. Since 2005, enrollment in first-year radiography programs has continued to increase, but at a significantly slower rate. First-year enrollment in 2006 and 2007 was 16,414 and 16,612, respectively.

Enrollment also grew in radiation therapy, from 500 first-year enrollees in 1999 to approximately 1,400 in 2005, although it has declined slightly since 2005. Enrollment in first-year nuclear medicine training programs increased from 1,000 in 1999 to approximately 1,600 in 2005, but then flattened in 2007.

The ASRT attributes the general flattening of enrollment since 2005 not to a lack of applicants, but to a lack of faculty. The ASRT reports that 32,000 qualified imaging technologist applicants were turned away from training programs in 2005, mainly due to insufficient faculty. With demand for imaging services increasing and imaging technologist training programs at full capacity, it is only a matter of time until the job market becomes more robust.  

In addition to supply and demand, there is another major force at work in the healthcare job market – the government. About 45 percent of healthcare spending comes from government sources, including Medicare, Medicaid, State Childrens Health Insurance Program, and other programs. Changes in how the government funds healthcare can have a dramatic impact on the job market for certain clinicians.

For example, several years ago, a cap was placed on the amount Medicare would pay for physical therapy services. While that cap has since been removed, it had temporarily knocked the legs out of the job market for PTs.

Similarly, in 2005, the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA) mandated a reduction in reimbursement for various diagnostic imaging services conducted at freestanding imaging centers, and froze reimbursement for other services. That has caused many imaging centers to cut back on hiring and to reduce vacation times for radiologists and techs. This has contributed to the relatively soft job market.

However, in the long run, the DRA is more likely to shift technologist job opportunities from imaging centers back to hospitals, rather than reducing the overall number of imaging jobs available.

The government may play an even bigger role in the job market, depending on the outcome of the current presidential election. Candidates from both parties claim they want to expand access to healthcare to the underinsured and uninsured. If this should actually happen, demand for healthcare services would spike dramatically, creating an optimal job market for techs and other clinicians for the foreseeable future. 

What Technologists Are Saying

Part II of the survey looks at the experiences of techs who work as travelers. The majority of those surveyed (74 percent) are relatively new to traveling and have been working as travelers for three years or less. Although the market for travel techs is less robust than it was several years ago, newcomers are still attracted to the travel option, and there continues to be openings for travelers around the country. Most travel techs surveyed (58 percent) said they plan to work as travelers for three years or less.

However, a sizeable minority (43 percent) plan to work as travelers for more than three years, suggesting that they have been able to find enough travel assignments and enjoy enough income stability to make traveling a long-range career option. Indeed, the No. 1 benefit of traveling cited by 85 percent of those surveyed was “higher pay”.

Almost all of those surveyed (98 percent) have worked in permanent positions. When asked to compare working as a traveler to working in a permanent job, 60 percent said that working as a traveler was more satisfying than permanent work, 38 percent said both work styles were equally satisfying, while 2 percent said permanent work was more satisfying than traveling.

Who Is in Demand?

Radiology departments and medical groups seeking traveling techs are generally looking for techs in growth modalities where the demand is greatest.  As referenced earlier, employers generally use travel techs to maintain services while they attempt to find permanent staff to meet growing needs.

Part III of Med Travelers’ survey looks at what types of techs our clients requested in the previous calendar year. These requests often reflect which types of techs are in demand for permanent jobs. The chart (in sidebar) breaks down the temporary imaging tech staffing assignments for calendar year 2007 and compares them to previous years:

These numbers reflect several patterns. One is that demand for X-ray techs is in relative decline compared to demand for other imaging modalities. While X-ray techs were our most requested modality in 2004 and 2005, they were our sixth most requested modality in 2007. Though X-ray remains a highly utilized modality, the rate of utilization in other modalities is increasing faster than in X-ray, and these techs are generally more readily available than techs trained in more advanced modalities.

The second clear pattern exhibited by these numbers is the rise in demand for ultrasound/vascular techs and interventional techs. We attribute growing demand for these modalities to the skyrocketing incidence of heart and vascular disease in the United States and the corresponding rise in the incidence of diabetes. 

In addition, the numbers show that demand for ultrasound, mammography, echocardiographers and MRI techs has remained fairly steady over the last several years, while demand for CT techs has increased. Demand for nuclear medicine techs, by contrast, has declined. 

Looking at the big picture, it is clear that the job market for imaging technologists is not as dynamic as it was three or four years ago when employers were clamoring for both more radiologists and more techs.

Today’s job market may seem weak compared to past peak years, but compared to the job market in general, the prospects for techs are still very positive. There are still plenty of temporary and permanent opportunities available, particularly for techs with training in advanced modalities. Given the leading role imaging plays in today’s health system, that trend should continue for the foreseeable future. 

— John Moberly is the executive vice president of Med Travelers, a national allied healthcare professional staffing firm based in Irving, Texas. Questions and comments can be directed to editorial@rt-image.com.