A radiologist assistant is a healthcare professional who assists the radiologist in carrying out tasks in the field of diagnostic imaging. Computed tomography, imaging scanning, magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasonography are just some of the complex activities in radiology. Typically, a radiologist assistant mainly provide patient care and management and other tasks and functions related to radiology. The diagnosis and the written report is the still the responsibility of the radiologist. Therefore, the functions of a radiologist assistant falls in between a radiologist and a radiographer.
He or she may assist in patient management and care, perform radiologic functions, assess a patient’s condition and reviewing medical records and follow up a patient evaluation under the supervision of the radiologist.
If you are already working as radiographer, a career as a radiologist assistant is the next step. The following conditions must be met to work as a radiologist assistant.
Program admission requirements differ in each school or institution but a person who is thinking of pursuing a career as a radiologist assistant must enroll in an accredited school. You can earn your bachelor’s degree in any of the 10 schools that offer the radiologist assistant program in the US. Both part-time and full-time options are offered.
Classroom teaching, as well as web instruction is used in the teaching process. As part of the program, the ‘clinical preceptorship’ which comprise of at least 1,792 clinical hours must be fulfilled. Such program can be completed in 24 months.
Radiologist assistant who have successfully pass the certification exam are issued a certification from the American Registry of Radiologic Technologist (ARRT). You must pass the certification exam in order to become registered as a radiologist assistant. Such exams are conducted 3 times a year. From the moment of application, each candidate is given 3 attempts to pass the exam within a 3 year period. To retain the certification, you are required to take at least 50 credits of continuing education every 2 years.
The median salary of a registered radiologist salary is around $102,972 per year and can earn as much as $112,615 according to the American Medical Association.
Diagnostic imaging is an evolving field. The origin of the radiologist assistant position was to address the increasing demand for radiology services and the shortage of radiologists. Such positions provide radiographers with the opportunity to further advance in their career and acquire a higher salary and develop the field of radiologic technology.
The job outlook for a radiologist assistant looks promising and is expected to grow quicker than average. The 2 main reasons associated to the increasing needs in medical diagnosis are retirement and an aging population. Medical tests, examination and diagnostic imaging services will be needed by more and more people. Finding lucrative and well-paying jobs are quite easy for radiologist assistants due to such demand.
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