Interested In A Job In The Healthcare Industry?

The healthcare industry is the fastest growing segment of the economy. By the year 2020, it will comprise 20% of the U.S. economy. That means one in five dollars will be spent on healthcare provision either on doctor's visits, hospital stays, medications, or medical equipment. Regardless of whether patients are paying directly or indirectly through insurance agencies or the government (Medicaid, Medicare, VA), this is a HUGE number.

What is driving this growth? Well, there are several factors at play, but basically America's healthcare system is geared towards providing cutting edge care to those who are able to gain access to it. One of the major drivers of cost increases is diagnostic imaging, also known as radiology. Radiology is the field of medicine that focus on arriving at diagnoses based on the evaluation of imaging data within a clinical context. The field uses various modalities to achieve this, such as x-ray, MRI, and ultrasound.

Why is radiology driving costs? First, the technology is cutting edge and expensive. Many centers have to keep the CT and MRI machines running around the clock just to make ends meet. Second, reimbursement rates are high and it's faster to read 10 CTs than it is to see 10 patients. Hospitals realize that imaging brings in revenue, so they have a financial incentive to increase the amount of imaging performed. Lastly, imaging catches errors and helps prevent medical malpractice lawsuits. Some may view this as a cynical approach to the field, but these factors do come into account. Of course, imaging on its own has advanced medicine greatly, but that does not explain why it is a cost driver. One must look past the medicine and technology to see the underlying business to understand how it is driving costs.

What does all this mean for someone pondering a career in allied health? Since the field is growing, there is demand for well-qualified professionals to assist radiologists in acquiring and performing diagnostic radiology studies and procedures. Radiologists are too busy to acquire each image, so practices hire technicians and technologists to assist in image acquisition. The staff works with the radiologist as a team to acquire high quality images to aide the primary team in diagnosing whatever malady brought the patient to the imaging suite.

Ultrasound is one of the diagnostic modalities within radiology. Ultrasound involves the use of high frequency sound waves and echoes to produce an image (much like a bat uses sonar to fly). The technology does not involve ionizing radiation as XRay and CT do. Furthermore, the image is much more operator-dependent, meaning the skill of the ultrasound technologist plays a KEY role in how well the study proceed. A great technologist will make all the difference, especially when using ultrasound to diagnose subtle entities, like a tiny hepatoma in the liver for example. The ultrasound technician works one-on-one with the patient and the radiologist, serving as a liaison between the two. Without the ultrasound technician job, the radiologist would not be able to perform his or her job. As we proceed, we will go into more depth about the various modalities and why ultrasound is the right choice for you.