Respect the Techs

It's always refreshing to speak with people who have a genuine respect for their profession, and a concern for its future. One such person is Rebecca Ludwig, PhD, who among her many titles, is Chairman of the Department of Imaging & Radiation Sciences, Divisions of Radiologic Imaging Sciences, Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Nuclear Medicine Imaging Sciences, Radiation Therapy, & Medical Dosimetry, at the College of Health Related Professions at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) in Little Rock.

Witness to & Promoter of Change

Ludwig's career in medical imaging spans more than 30 years. When asked about the major changes she's seen, Ludwig refers fondly to "the old days," when she received her initial training in the early 1970s in a hospital-based program. Then, she says, radiography students had nuclear medicine and radiation therapy as part of the curriculum. But as her career progressed, she saw these fields grow into specialties of their own, not necessarily associated with the radiology department.

"In my lifetime, we've seen the progression of specialties without a lot of crossover between them," she observes, "But now we're seeing imaging coming back under one umbrella, as with fusion imaging, PET/CT, and some of the new molecular imaging techniques."

As some things that were old become new again, it again makes sense to have people with expertise across multiple disciplines. And to address these changes, Ludwig's department is developing anatomy-specific courses to support intra-professional development. For example, they have created a specialty course on cardiac imaging, in which students learn about cardiac imaging across all modalities, not just their own. Such courses also make sense financially, says Ludwig who manages a department budget of more than $1.2 million, because it's more efficient to offer courses that appeal across disciplines, rather than to just one specialty area.

Advanced Practice Arrives

Another change, Ludwig notes with great pride and satisfaction, is that the time for advanced practice in medical imaging has finally come, in the creation of the Radiologist Assistant (RA) role. For those unfamiliar with RAs – which wouldn't be surprising, since the first class graduated as recently as June 2005 from Loma Linda University – the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT), provides a simple definition: An RA is an "… advanced-level radiologic technologist who enhances patient care by extending the capacity of the radiologist. Their role falls between the traditional roles of the radiologist and the radiographer."

Until this role was developed, Ludwig explains, there was really no career path for those who wanted to grow professionally, but wanted to remain in clinical practice in their primary discipline to do. "Every institution would have techs with strong abilities, those who exceeded expectations. Now these people have an option," Ludwig says. "They can advance in level of education and in scope of practice and stay in the clinical environment. After all, not everyone wants to work in management or enter academia." And beyond meeting these techs' desire for professional clinical growth, Ludwig says, the RA role helps to take some of the pressure off radiologists' shoulders, as they encounter increased volume of examinations resulting from the needs of an aging population and emerging or advanced technologies.

An enthusiastic supporter of the role of RAs, Ludwig is the founding and current director of the RA Program at UAMS, which began in fall 2005, and awards a Master of Imaging Sciences degree. The RA program at UAMS is fully online, has full- and part-time options and, unlike other programs, students can start in any semester, with few campus visits.

A part of the UAMS program requirement is that RA students must be involved in research, whether undertaking original research or participating in the research of another primary investigator. "It's important that we grow the abundance of research in our profession," Ludwig asserts, "Historically, techs have not engaged in much research. In order to advance our profession we have to be aware of changes and how they impact us, and how we can improve our clinical practice. The only way we can validate where we've been, where we're at and where we're going is to do research."

As of spring 2008, UAMS has graduated two RAs, and both have earned the ARRT's Registered Radiologist Assistant credential, and the UAMS expects to have three more graduates by the end of summer 2008. Looking to the future, the department is collaborating with two other universities to develop an innovative, online advanced practice program in nuclear medicine. The students will take core courses with the RA students, and both tracks will be awarded the Master of Imaging Sciences degree. The consortium of universities hopes to make the program available as early as spring 2009.

Challenging Misconceptions

There's no sign that the market for imaging and radiation sciences professionals will slow down. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook says that employment in the all fields of imaging and radiation sciences are expected to grow "faster" or "much faster" than the average for all occupations through 2016.

Currently, Ludwig's Department of Imaging & Radiation Sciences has 27 core faculty and staff with many additional adjunct and clinical faculty, and 198 students, out of 520 in the College of Health Related Professions. And while Ludwig encourages people to enter the field, thanks to its many opportunities and varied directions to explore and grow into, she warns that it's not appropriate for everyone.

"Applicants tend to underestimate time commitment for studying. It's a much more intensive process than what it appears on the surface. People often don't think of the skills and technical information behind the scenes, and therefore mistakenly think that the job is just pushing a button." As a result, she recommends that people who are interested in the field talk to someone who is actually in practice, or in an educational program, to learn about what they do, why they do it, and how much they had to study to get there.

Ludwig also dismisses the notion prevalent in the public that imaging careers are an easy job. "It's more physically demanding than people think. Techs have to move people who can't move themselves. They have to move equipment, and they are on their feet much of the time." And of course, some people also think that imaging jobs are "easy" because they're "cleaner" than other healthcare occupations. "Well," she says, "They may still have those bodily fluids to deal with!"

Training the Future Generation

In addition to needing new techs, as in other healthcare professions, there is a need for new faculty to teach them. Many educators are closer to retirement than to starting a family. One way that UAMS is working to grow their own replacements, is to develop pathways that allow current and returning students to function as tutors or as teaching assistants. Previously, students hadn't been encouraged to teach, and now they are, as a part of the educational process.

Respect the Techs!

Ludwig was selected in 2007 to be the 18th Honors Lecturer at the annual conference of the Association of Educators in Imaging and Radiologic Sciences, Inc. (AEIRS), which also marked the 40th anniversary of the association. In her lecture, "Giving Credit Where Credit is Due: Is Your Contribution Recognized?", Ludwig addressed a topic dear to her heart: Acknowledgement for the contributions that imaging and radiation professionals have made to medical research.

"Often," she says, "in manuscripts and studies, a scan or image is used, but the tech who created the image is not cited as a contributor, or even as the source of the image." For Ludwig, the practice is akin to plagiarism in the literary or art worlds.

Beyond equitability, it makes perfect sense. "After all," she says, "We consider imaging part art and part science."

For an engaging story about Rebecca Ludwig's earlier volunteer medical work with International Aid, see our article: Images Bring Hope. For more on the role of the Radiologist Assistant, see: • The American Society of Radiologic Technologists' page on Radiologist Assistants • The ARRT's page on Radiologist Assistants

Discuss This Article

Have something you'd like to say? Tell us what you think! Read and post comments for this article.

Find a Job

Choose your career:

MedHunters is the world's biggest healthcare job board. Our job directory has 17,875 jobs with 2,484 hospitals and other direct employers.

We want you to find your next job on MedHunters. Need Help? Call us at 1-888-884-8242, email us at info@medhunters.com or sign up now.