One of the most important concepts in healthcare is patient care. It is our responsibility as health professionals to provide the utmost care to each and every patient we come into contact with. This is especially important when it comes to radiology. As radiographers, we must abide by ASRT Code of Ethics and provide the patient with the best care while also minimizing the use of radiation when possible. Concepts such as shielding, ALARA, collimation, and techniques all play an important role in minimizing patient dose and providing protection to the patient. This section discusses many important concepts including the radiographer’s role in patient protection, methods to decrease exposure, methods of estimating dose, and patient dose pertaining …show more content…
10,70
c. 20,70
d. 10,60
CT contributes a lot to patient dose. Unlike other x-ray exams, CT dose is nearly uniform throughout the tissue therefore contributing to 50% of ESE for body CT (Bushong, 2013, p.570-571).
True or False
12. The Safe Medical Devices Act enforces patient safety by requiring medical devices to be tested and verified “safe” before use in medical facilities.
False-Although testing medical devices prior to use is important, the Safe Medical Devices Act of 1990 requires medical facilities to report any instances of injury, illness, and death due to the use of medical devices (Cornuelle, 2014, slide 29).
13. When performing a radiographic exam on a pregnant patient, it is important to consider that the first two weeks of pregnancy is the most critical time for irradiation.
False- The first two weeks are actually the time in which radiation is least hazardous. The only repercussion of a pregnant patient receiving radiation during the first two weeks is the reabsorption of the embryo (Bushong, 2013, p.575).
14. It is advised that axillary views in mammography should not be done routinely and no more than two images per breast should be obtained during a
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It is important to note that according to Bushong (2013), “two mammographic exposures result in the total glandular dose that is the sum of the individual’s glandular doses” (approx. 15% of ESE) (p.570).
Calculation
15. A fluoro exam is being performed. The exam takes four minutes to complete and assuming 4 R/min, what is the patient's ESE?
16 R-To determine the ESE or patient dose, you must multiply the time of radiation usage (4 min) by the ESE 4 R/min. Minutes cancel out leaving a total of 16 R (Cornuelle,2014, slide
the effective doses from diagnostic CT procedures are typically estimated to be in the range of 1 to 10 mSv. This range is not much less than the lowest doses of 5 to 20 mSv estimated to have been received by some of the Japanese survivors of the atomic bombs. These survivors, who are estimated to have experienced doses slightly larger than those encountered in CT, have demonstrated a small but increased radiation-related excess relative risk for
The conversation around the rising costs of health care continues to be a high priority topic of discussion from consumer all the way up to the government. There are many products and services that contribute to the rising costs, as well as some responsibility left to practicing providers who choose to use high dollar radiology services for patient care. Ionizing radiation has been used for more than a century, however, this evolution or radiology services into widespread diagnostic and therapeutic uses has resulted in a significant increase in the population’s overall exposure to radiation with the potential to increase the risk of cancer (Amis & Butler, 2010). Examples of high dollar radiology services are services like Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Computer Tomography (CT) scans, and Echocardiograms. These services allow physicians t...
The role of the radiologist is one that has undergone numerous changes over the years and continues to evolve a rapid pace. Radiologists specialize in the diagnoses of disease through obtaining and interpreting medical images. There are a number of different devices and procedures at the disposal of a radiologist to aid him or her in these diagnoses’. Some images are obtained by using x-ray or other radioactive substances, others through the use of sound waves and the body’s natural magnetism. Another sector of radiology focuses on the treatment of certain diseases using radiation (RSNA). Due to vast clinical work and correlated studies, the radiologist may additionally sub-specialize in various areas. Some of these sub-specialties include breast imaging, cardiovascular, Computed Tomography (CT), diagnostic radiology, emergency, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), musculoskeletal, neuroradiology, nuclear medicine, pediatric radiology, radiobiology, and Ultrasound (Schenter). After spending a vast amount of time on research and going to internship at the hospital, I have come to realize that my passion in science has greatly intensified. Furthermore, both experiences helped to shape up my future goals more prominently than before, which is coupled with the fact that I have now established a profound interest in radiology, or rather nuclear medicine.
In the radiology profession first you must write the patient’s file. This includes information about insurance, medical history, what the required x-ray is for and where it is going to be taken on the body. Writing in this way is similar to writing a small research paper. You must do research on the patients and there history and what insurance they have. Writing the report is important because the information must be accurate so the patient can be helped as much as possible. If the information about medical history is incorrect it can cause a huge problem for the patient. For example, if the patient is claustrophobic they would need to get an open room x-ray where the patient isn’t in an enclosed tube so they don’t have a panic attack and potentially injure themselves and others. It is very important to make sure the report has the correct area of where the x-ray needs to be taken. Having the wrong part of the body x-...
The team includes a radiation oncologist, radiation physicist, dosimetrist, radiation therapist, and a radiation therapy nurse. Each member of the team has a specific role in the treatment of each patient. “The radiation oncologist is a doctor specially trained to treat cancer patients with radiation.” (American Cancer Society p. 4) The oncologist will work with the dosimetrist to determine the plan for treatment. “The radiation physicist is the person who makes sure the radiation equipment is working as it should and that it gives you the dose prescribed by your radiation oncologist.” (American Cancer Society p. 4) “The dosimetrist is supervised by the radiation physicist, this person helps the radiation oncologist plan the treatment.” (American Cancer Society p. 4) “The radiation therapist is the person who operates the radiation equipment and positions you for treatment.” (American Cancer Society p. 4) Every member of the team is important to ensure the treatment is delivered safely and effectively as
Computed tomography (CT) and Radionuclide imaging (RNI) are both a form of diagnostic imaging. Since they have been first introduced in medical imaging they both suffered a huge development over the years in terms of image acquisition and also patient radiation protection. The following essay it is going to focus on just a few important things that make CT and RNI similar and different in the same time. However this subject can be discussed in much depth, the focus is going to be on the similarities and differences of the physics imaging methods and also a small awareness of biological effects and radiation protection.
Many of the experts agree that the dose should be kept as low as possible with minimal exposure to the fetus of any age. It has been shown that fetuses before 16 weeks are the most sensitive to any dose of ionizing radiation and have been shown to have lower IQ’s and verbal scores than those exposed after 16 weeks. Fetuses exposed after 16 weeks have the same amount of risk as children up to 10 years old getting cancer. It is very important to take in to consideration gestational age, shielding, the position of the x-ray tube and the amount of necessity that is considered in taking a radiographic image or performing a radiographic procedure in a pregnant woman.
According to the report provided by the consultant, the employees at this facility were not taking precautions in safeguarding the patient’s health information. Therefore, the employees at this facility were in violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA). It is important for employees to understand the form of technology being used and the precautions they must take to safeguard patient information.
Although no adverse health effects have been directly linked to low-dose radiation exposure, the medical community is playing it safe with regards to radiation. Most physicians are very careful about ordering radiologic tests. They should not order a study unless it will improve patient care. If you have a question about the importance or the necessity of a radiologic test that has been ordered for you, be sure to ask your physician.
Radiation therapists work closely with patients to fight cancer. According to Health Care Careers, Oncologists, Dosimetrists and nurses are some of the professionals that a radiation therapist works with while caring for a cancer patient. This group of professionals will determine a specialized treatment plan. The first step usually includes a CT scan performed by a radiologist to find the exact area that needs to be targeted with x-rays. Next, the therapist uses a special machine that emits radiation called a Linear Accelerator. They use this machine during a treatment called external beam therapy. During this process, the Linear Accelerator will project x-rays at targeted cancer cells or tumors. Another therapist will be in a different room monitoring the patient’s viral signs until the procedure is over. The external therapy l...
“Nursing is an art, and if it is to be made an art, requires as exclusive a devotion, as hard a preparation, as any painter’s or sculptor’s work...” (Nightingale, 1868)
Modern medicine is capable of treating a tremendous range of human disease and injuries, but the usefulness of all medical specialties depends on accurate diagnosis. Virtually every conceivable medical specialty relies on radiological technologies to provide formal diagnoses, making radiology one of the most important of all medical specialties. Radiologists enjoy some of the best working conditions in modern medicine and typically experience very positive employment conditions. Consequently, their services are generally in very high demand, with many starting out with six-figure annual incomes immediately after completion of their professional training.
Keeping patients safe is essential in today’s health care system, but patient safety events that violate that safety are increasing each year. It was only recently, that the focus on patient safety was reinforced by a report prepared by Institute of medicine (IOM) entitled ” To err is human, building a safer health system”(Wakefield & Iliffe,2002).This report found that approx-imately 44,000 to 98,000 deaths occur each year due to medical errors and that the majority was preventable. Deaths due to medical errors exceed deaths due to many other causes such as like HIV infections, breast cancer and even traffic accidents (Wakefield & Iliffe, 2002). After this IOM reports, President Clinton established quality interagency coordination task force with the help of government agencies. These government agencies are responsible for making health pol-icies regarding patient safety to which every HCO must follow (Schulman & Kim, 2000).
Radiation protection is a vital topic and when it comes to children, it’s necessity cannot be stressed enough. As a result of the quantity of CT scans on children multiplying 20-fold since 1980, the subject of pediatric radiation protection has expanded into a more public domain (Orth & Goske, 2009). Dr.Orth and Dr.Goske discuss the topic of pediatric radiation protection in regards to computed tomography. They are just a minor part of a great campaign called “Image Gently” that encourages awareness of pediatric radiation protection (Orth & Goske, 2009). Dr,Orth and Dr.Goske do an excellent job of highlighting some of the key topics of this subject from why children are more sensitive to how radiation it affects parents. This essay
A recent report published in the issue of New England journal of medicine raises serious concerns regarding the use & overuse of CT scan. While people risk of developing cancer from a CAT or CT scan, which radiate high degrees of radiation, are comparatively low, the researchers fear that their fast growth as an extremely precise diagnostic tool is exposing a lot of the populace – and an growing amount of vulnerable children to radiation and may be setting the phase for higher frequency of cancer in the future.