Comments on: Calling All X-ray Techs, And Rad Tech Students: Is This A Good, Lucrative Carrier?

By: dizzy22

dizzy22 — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:33:51 +0000

It not a lucrative career it a good career. i would suggest you evaluate your own personal tastes and skill before deciding on a career. You will do better in something you love than just something for the money.
If you want money be a doctor or lawyer they make a lot more than X-ray tech or a business owner.
The job is okay it kinda routine. You take a picture and the doctor or radiologist examines it. You have no input on patient care. you follow procedure to produce a medical image that is your job. sounds simple huh?
Pay is okay, Nursing and phyiscal therapist make more money and are in more demand. The demand for X-ray tech is has dried up too many tech in the field now.
The best advice i can give is find something you love and do that!!

By: Judy G

Judy G — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:20:57 +0000

I’ve been in the field for (YIKES!) 17 years, and I LOVE it. There are many opportunities, all you have to do is go after them. You may never become a millionaire, but, speaking for me, there is a lot of satisfaction in the job and career as a whole. Job openings are out there, but you may not get your job of choice right away. In the right setting, you should be able to cross-train into CT or MRI. They seem sililar, but are very different! I can’t tell you about a “routine” because departments are so varied. Even in the same facility, you may have a different routine from other technologists.

By: Rhonda

Rhonda — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:02:25 +0000

Yes, this is a very lucrative field with high demand. Once you have done the basics, you can earn more by specializing in various fields. You can check out local wages by contacting the Department of Labor in your area.
Best wishes.

By: Lissacal

Lissacal — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:00:19 +0000

There are many schools in many states where you can get trained to be a radiologic technologist (the proper term for a x-ray tech). You can attend a hospital based program (and earn a certificate), a 2 year college program (AS degree), and even a 4 year college program (BS degree). The hospital based programs are the least expensive, and honestly, I think the education received there is superior. Once you graduate and take your registry exam, no future employer is going to care what type of educational program you went through. All they care about is your license. You can find an accredited RT program at this site. Just search “radiography” and your state…links are provided which will give you additional information on each program (cost, duration of program, contact person):http://www.jrcert.org/cert/Search.jsp
RTs do more than just x-rays of bones. We do fluoroscopy studies (involving the intestinal tract and barium), arthrograms (assisting the radiologist with injecting contrast or dye into joints for evaluation) and myelograms (assisting the radiologist with injecting contrast into the spinal canal). If you work in a hospital setting, you will do portable exams in ICU, CCU, the ER and even surgery. Some RTs take x-rays in the morgue.
Most RTs will also become proficient and licensed in other modalities, such as mammography, CT and/or MRI. This training does not require any additional formal training, and is usually learned on the job. The more licenses you have, the more money you can make, as you will be in higher demand. With additional schooling, you can also do ultrasound.
Well, I work in a free standing imaging center. My office is only open M-F, 8:00-5:00. No weekends, nights or call work. In a hospital, most imaging departments are staffed 24 hours a day. You could be scheduled to work nights, PM shifts, weekends, holidays….anytime really!
I highly recommend you do an observation in both a hospital imaging department and a free standing imaging facility. Until you see what RTs do, you won’t know if it is the job for you! It would also give you a wonderful opportunity to talk to RTs in your area. Best wishes…..
Oh, another good resource….check out the student area of the ASRT website:https://www.asrt.org/Content/educators/_…
The American Society of Radiologic Technologists just did a large salary survey. The salary varies, depending on your experience, specialties and geographical area. For example, the annual income of a RT in Alabama was $43,196. With additional training, and licensing in MRI scanning, the salary is $51,174. In California, the average RT salary is $71,063. With MRI licensing, it is $83,185. To view, the survey, and see the average salary in your state, you can go to this link:https://www.asrt.org/media/pdf/research/…