Ultrasound imaging is one of the fastest fields emerging out of the health care industry. Taking courses at trade schools that specialize in the medical field that have specialized degree plans for ultrasound technicians are turning out well-trained students with knowledge of the most current sonography technologies. Ultrasound is most often associated with maternity physicians and pregnancies, but the use of diagnostic medical sonography is used to scan a variety of areas of the body such as, the nervous system, digestive system, blood vessels, tumors, the eyes, and many more.
More and more health care professionals are preferring ultrasound to other invasive diagnostic techniques. Techniques such as radiographic technology or x-rays are not as detailed and have safty issues. Research has shown that Diagnostic Sonography has no harmful effects on the patient or sonographer, the complexity and importance of the procedure required a certified sonographer to do the job. The responsibilities of the sonographer is more than just operating the machinery, the explain procedures to the patients, direct patients to the correct positions that will gain the best results, they find the initial indications of healthy or unhealthy areas, and record images for diagnosis of the physician. This requires the sonographer to be educated and trained in their field of expertise.
With all these responsibilities most times the healthcare institutions display the credentials of their ultrasound technicians in the examining room. Patients expect to see that the training was received at a certified school and that the technician met national certification requirements. After receiving the original certification the ultrasound technician must keep up with current trends through continuous education in the medical field.
Ultrasound technician training programs vary depending on the degree pursued, the specialty, and the technological capabilities of the school. Most ultrasound students finish 24-to 48 month training programs and obtain an associate’s or bachelor’s degree from one of the many diagnostic medical sonography schools in the US. There are also specialized one year programs to achieve a certificate for those already in the medical field wanting to specialize in other areas or as a second occupation. The programs are usually broken up into sections: classroom, labs, and externships. The subjects studied are anatomy, physiology, ultrasound principles, radiology, instrumentation, basic physics, patient care, and medical ethics.
What is the average anual ultrasound technician salary? With the diagnostic skills you obtain through the educational training in ultrasound technology, you can expect to earn an average of up to $29 per hour, or an annual sonography salary of more than $72,230. These expected earnings also can vary from location and experience. Most employments of sonogram technologists were held in hospitals, but some were employed by private physicians’ offices or diagnostic imaging centers.
The need for ultrasound technicians is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations over most of the next decade. This growth is driven by the aging of the population, the increase demand for diagnostic imaging, and the desire of the patients to use alternatives to radiological procedures.