Jobs

We talked about how to become an Ultrasound Technician previously, let us look at certification and licensing requirements in particular in this article. While it is not a state regulatory requirement it is commonplace for employers to require any newly hired ultrasound technician to be certified as an ultrasound technician by the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS).  This certification is only given to those ultrasound technicians that have successfully completed an associates degree or better level educational program from an accredited institution, passed an exam given by ARDMS, and commit to adhering to the professional standards and continuing education set forth by ARDMS.  The educational program accreditation must be given by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Educational Programs (CAAHEP).

In addition to their standard certification as an ultrasound technician, the ARDMS also has a series of additional credentials and certifications an ultrasound technician can acquire through one of their specialty credential and certification programs.  In order to achieve a specialty credential or certification as an ultrasound technician you first need to pass their initial exam which is called the Sonography Principles and Instrumentation (SPI) examination.  After you have passed that exam then you need to pass their specialty exam.  For example, they have specialty exams in general sonography areas such as the abdomen, fetal echocardiography, neurosonolgy, and obstetrics or they have other certifications in areas such as pediatric echocardiology and even vascular technology.  There are several different credentials and certifications offered through ARDMS and all represent different career paths that an ultrasound technician can strive for as they proceed through their career.

The reason their is such a focus on certification is not only for the benefit of the standard ultrasound technician but also for all of the benefit of the specialties.  Employers are increasingly aware of the fact that they need to have personnel that has been properly trained on all of the latest technological advancements.  Whereas in the past when ultrasound equipment was not changing each year, a technician could be trained and have the same skill set for the rest of their career.  But these days the ultrasound technician needs to be repeatedly certified every few years and needs to be a part of continuing education in order to be fully trained and up to date on the latest in technological developments.  It is the certifying agencies that ensure the technician has mastered this training or they will withdraw certification from that particular ultrasound technician.

This process also ensures to the patient that they are getting the most advanced care available and are being handled by professionals that are fully trained in the latest medical developments.  The hiring of certified ultrasound technicians also insulates the referring medical professionals from lawsuits.  They would have a difficult time explaining to a medical board why they referred a patient to a non certified non credentialed ultrasound technician when there were others that were certified that were available.  The mere existence of a certification program makes the use of those certified by that program almost mandatory from the perspective of any doctor trying to mitigate their exposure to liability.  As a result anyone that is planning to enter this career in the future should plan to follow all of the necessary steps in order to become have ultrasound technician certification.

We already talked a bit about the job description and what exactly an Ultrasound Tech does in our previous articles. Let us today take a closer look at some of the job duties of an Ultrasound Technician. The Ultrasound technician has complete responsibility for all aspects of the ultrasound laboratory in which they work.  The laboratory can be simply an office or room within a hospital or a stand alone office or facility.  The ultrasound technician has a job where they interact with patients and their referring doctors on a daily basis but all reports, paperwork, and analysis is the sole responsibility of the technician.  This combination of fully independent work and regular communication with others is one thing that makes the ultrasound technician job attractive.  Some careers are overloaded with interpersonal time and others are filled with independent work without interaction from others.  But the ultrasound technician has a balance of both.

To understand the job duties of an ultrasound technician it would be helpful if we simply discuss a typical day for an ultrasound technician.  This interaction will show the various things the technician is responsible for handling.

When the ultrasound technician comes in for the day they first need to check the schedule of patients that they are going to test for that day.  The technician is solely responsible for keeping and making this schedule. They then need to review the charts and medical documentation for each patient and ensure that the proper medical supplies that will be needed for the day are stocked within the ultrasound lab.  They may also need to contact the doctor’s that have referred the days patients to seek any clarification on the tests that need to be performed.  Now that the supplies are accounted for, and the daily schedule has been checked, and the technician has a clear understanding of the patients needs for that day, the technician is ready to check the equipment.

The technician needs to check all of the equipment daily to ensure that it is properly functioning.  If there are any malfunctions, they need to fix them or get substitute equipment in immediately  in order to handle the days case load.  Once the equipment is checked, prepared, and calibrated for the day they are ready tot meet with patients.

When a patient arrives the technician needs to take great care to ensure that the patient they are seeing and testing matches the medical file they were sent.  An error in tracking or performing the wrong tests can cause a problem, and so the technician makes certain everything matches the file by causally talking with the patient.  The casual conversation will reflect things in the file in order to ensure everything matches.  They then describe the procedures that need to be done with the patient and explain to them what to expect.  Because some procedures are in sensitive areas, the technician needs to be a master at building strong rapport in order to gain cooperation and the trust of the patient.

During the procedure and test, the technician needs to take great care to still communicate to the patient but not to communicate any results of the test. This is because it is up to the technician to perform the test and communicate the results to the doctor only.  The technician is not allowed to interpret the tests because the interpretation is considered a diagnosis and that is something only the doctor can perform.

The technician is however responsible for gaining the best and most precise imaging of the areas they have been requested to test.  The technician is also expected to be cognizant of anything during the test that would require further imaging.  If there is something in the images that the doctor will want to see, even if not ordered, the technician is responsible for providing this extra information to the doctor.  It is not that the technician is performing a diagnosis, but they are responsible for making note of any thing that is abnormal during the tests.

After the patient leaves, the technician is responsible for preparing a full report on the test and the findings.  They then ship that report with the imaging video back to the referring doctor.  The referring doctor will oftentimes contact the technician for clarification on their report and/or images.

The above is a basic detail of an ultrasound technician’s job duties.  While it is far from all inclusive and many ultrasound technicians do not work in this specific type of environment, it shows how the technician is responsible for many different tasks.  They are responsible for their equipment, scheduling, reporting, analysis of patients and test results, reporting back to the doctor, and communicating with referring doctor’s as well as patients.  It also shows how the technician is responsible for one-on-one communication and physical contact with the patient.

This is a high skill and technical profession that utilizes specific testing equipment to assist physicians in making diagnosis for their patients.  The tests that the technician performs uses sonography to make an image of the the internal organs, tissues, and elements within the body of the patient.  This image allows the doctor to understand the internal systems of the patient without having to use an x-ray.  It is increasingly the trend for doctors to avoid x-ray’s and use ultrasound when possible in order to limit the total amount of radiation exposure for the patient.

The ultrasound technician spends a significant amount of their day in one-on-one direct contact with patients.  This is not only conversational but physical contact.  As such anyone that wishes to be a successful ultrasound technician must be comfortable with working physically close to all types of people, even those that have abrasive and difficult personalities as well as those that are physically and even mentally ill.

The technician is also responsible for significant record keeping for patients as well as administrative tracking.  They need to maintain the laboratory schedule as well as ensure that the proper tests are performed on the proper patient and that the patient they are seeing is properly identified and associated with the test ordered.  This may sound routine and as an average expectation, but patient tracking is a critical function for any medical professional because any slight mistake can have dire consequences for the patient.

The ultrasound technician must also have technical skills in analyzing the test results to ensure that the images produced reflect exactly what they referring physician needs to see.  The technician must also use independent judgment to notice when there are additional things in the images that the doctor needs to see more clearly and to ensure the doctor is aware of these additional concerns.  The technician is not a doctor, but is in a position to assist the doctor should they see anything out of the ordinary.  The technician must also make patient reports and observational communication reports to the referring physician on a daily basis.

The ultrasound technician job description is a mix of many high level skills.  They must be excellent communicators in order to make the patient feel comfortable and so the patient will allow what is oftentimes a very intrusive and uncomfortable procedure.  They must make certain the test is accurately delivering what they physician has requested as well as observe the results and the test to document and highlight any additional abnormalities.  They must have the ability to prepare thorough daily reports that communicate all findings to the referring physicians and they must be masters at keeping accurate and very detailed records of every test, procedure, and patient.

In addition to the above the physical demand of the position requires that the technician be able to have physical dexterity in bending, pushing, pulling, and leaning over patients.  They must have the ability to lift over forty pounds and be able to fully use their arms, legs, hands, and wrists.  They must also have good hearing in order to utilize the equipment properly as well as good vision in order to view and understand the images made by the diagnostic equipment.  The technician is also expected to stand for the majority of their day and they must be able to properly distinguish colors that appear on the testing equipment.