I Dare You to Move

I found out something disturbing today, that I kind of already knew about, but hadn't actually realized. In NC to take an x-ray, you don't have to be licensed. This means that if you go to a 'doc-in-a-box' place as they're called, like a family practice or an urgent care practice, and you need to have a radiograph taken, the person actually doing that for you may not be licensed! It may be the nurse at the office, or someone else. Not someone who is an actual radiographer. It's not as dire as the practice has pulled someone random off the street to push the button, but these people may not have training in radiography and, though you may get a good image, will not give you the best care as a patient. They could over or underexpose you, or they could use the wrong mAs or kVp, and will not get the best quality image that you deserve! So when you go to the doctor's and they say you need a radiograph, you have the right to ask whether the person taking the image is a certified radiographer. And if they're not, you have the right to get your doctor to order a radiograph, and go get a radiographer to take it for you. AKA keep me in business. Dr. Noble said they have been trying to get a licensure law in place for a long time, but it hasn't happened yet. I tell you what, that is something I'm going to work on. If not before I graduate, definitely after! We are one of only 8 or 9 states that still does not require licensure. We are first in flight.....but last in pretty much everything else.








We started Imaging Physics yesterday. It's actually really interesting, so far. We've been talking about how xrays are made, and about the tube and the different components of that. We've also been looking at screen-film imaging and digital imaging. Most clinical sites have digital, but some still have screen-film, and other smaller practices still have screen-film, so they're both important. We have both in our lab. A lot of what we're doing in this second half of the intro course is just skimming over things we'll be doing our entire first year, so not much of it has been too in-depth (or so that's what they say...) and a lot of it, our professor says "We'll get into that more next semester" or "next spring." So basically it's just an introduction.

Harry Potter tonight!!