Ultrasound Technician Career Guide and Counseling

Question: ultrasound technician? im kind of in a rut. ever since i finished high school i thought i wanted to be a dental hygienist. but now im rethinking. i took a dental assisting class and its not as interesting as i thought it would be. so now i think im going to switch to an ultrasound technician, but i was wondering what general education classes are required before i can go to school for that? i know that DA and RDH are completely different. i just dont think im interested in a dental career anymore is what im getting at.

Answer: I had to have physics, biology, public speaking and algebra as pre recs before I started..... If you have any questions about the actual job or classes you can message me I only have 4 months left.

Question: What is an ultrasound technician and can a person get sick from it? I remember reading that a sonographer, ultrasound technician can harm their bones from all that ultrasound. Is that true or what? These jobs are in the medical field if anyone doesn't know.

Answer: The ultrasound doesn't harm the sonographer's bones at all, however sonographers are prone to musculoskeletal injuries from the physical work they do with their scanning arm, so things like RSI, arthritis and tendinitis are common in the shoulder, elbow and wrist of sonographers.

Question: How do begin to become an Ultrasound Technician? Do I have to get a license or can I do on-the-job training? I have a 3 year old and would like to start preparing now to become an ultrasound technician for when he enters kindergarten in 3 years. What do I need to do?

Answer: This is what I am going to school for, and as I did my own research I found there are several avenues of entering this field. Some hospitals offer training but require a background in something like Radiology. The most common way is through a 2 year technical college that offers an accredited program in sonography. First, look on this website to find an accredited program near you: (Under Profession, select Diagnostic Medical Sonographer). http://www.caahep.org/Find_An_Accredited… Then contact the school(s) nearest you to get information on their sonography programs. You will need to know what their requirements are (as far as the classes you must take before applying to the program) and what type of program(s) they offer. How long are the programs? (Usually between 18 months & 2 years). How long is the waiting list to get in? They will be able to answer all your questions and give you the info you need to get started. Go ahead & start talking to schools now, since most of these sonography programs are very competitive & often have long waiting lists to get into the program. Good luck, I hope everything works out for you! Here is some additional information about DMS (including training & qualifications): http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos273.htm

Question: What is the average cost for an ultrasound technician course in the san fernado valley? I am planning to go to school to get a diploma for an ultrasound technician, but I dont know what is the cost, I want to know if there is schools around the san fernando valley, in ca that dont charge that much for the course. If anyone can give me any information I want to know all about the cost and the term and if its worth the price. Thanks !!!!!!!

Answer: I don't know about the San Fernando valley, but I'm an ultrasound student in Canada now. It's a 2 and a half year program. Total tuition is around $15,000, not counting books and relocation expenses for practicum. It's also a very competitive program to get into (my class has 18 students - 400 applied), so definately do a lot of research about the profession before you apply.

Question: Is it possible to become an Ultrasound Technician who only does Ultrasounds on pregnant women? Okay, I'm kinda young, but I know pretty much for a fact that I want to be an Ultrasound Technician after I graduate. I know you have to graduate high school and do the college Associate Degree in Ultrasound Technology...anyway I was wondering if it's possible to become an Ultrasound Technician who works specifically looking at unborn babies?

Answer: There is no ultrasound program that offers only OB work; you will be required to learn and be proficient in abdominal and pelvic organs, thyroid, and scrotal imaging, as well. However, once you have finished your program and passed your registry exams, you can certainly specialize in babies by choosing to work in an obstetrics office, rather than a regular clinic, imaging center, or hospital. The best of luck!

Question: How can I start studying to become a Ultrasound Technician? I'm 14 and I want to become an Ultrasound Technician. You know the people who look at babies inside their mother. I really want to start studying! Please Help!!!

Answer: Find an accredited ultrasound program that you would be able to attend (ie: one that is near where you live or one you commute to easily, one that is not out of your price range etc). You can then see what their requirements are for new students. You will need certain prerequisite college courses. Print out their requirements, and take it to your high school counselor. That counselor can make sure you take the proper high school courses, which would allow you to immediately take the college level prerequisite courses, once you graduate from high school. When thinking about entering an ultrasound program, you need not be concerned so much about certificate vs. degree. What is important is that you go to an ACCREDITED program, whether it is college or hospital based. An accredited program allows you to take your registry (licensing) exams upon graduation. Once you get licensed, you will never be asked about your schooling again. An employer does not care what route you take to get licensed, they just want you to have that license. Don't waste your time or money on a NON-accredited program. Upon completion and graduation from a NON-accredited program, you must work in the field of sonography for a full year prior to taking your licensing examinations. But, you will have a hard time finding an employer to hire you, unless you are licensed. I would suggest you observe an imaging department to get an idea of what ultrasonographers do daily. There is much more to it than scanning pregnant women. We also do studies on the abdominal and pelvic organs, arteries of the neck and extremities, breasts, testicles, prostates, to name some other examinations. Most people have no idea how much is involved in this career! You can find a list of accredited schools in your area, by searching "diagnostic medical sonography" and your state at the following site. There are links provided for each program, which will give you additional information (including course duration and prerequisite courses): http://www.caahep.org/Find_An_Accredited… Many people, myself included, go to school to become a radiologic technologist, before continuing to ultrasound school. In fact, it can be difficult to get into u/s school without the RT license. There are many more choices for schools for x-ray in most states. You can find them here, by searching “radiography“ and your state: http://www.jrcert.org/cert/Search.jsp The pay for ultrasound technologists will vary, depending on experience and geographical location. The American Society of Radiologic Technologists just did a large salary survey, in 2007. You can see how much a RT and/or ultrasound technologist averaged, per year, in your state here: https://www.asrt.org/media/pdf/research/…

Question: what is the differnce between an ultrasound technician and a diagnostic medical sonographer? ive been wanting to do something in the medical field for a while now, and i really want to do something with the ultrasound machines. i read online that a diagnostic medical sonographer only does the ultrasounds and a physician does the actual talking with the patient and tells them what's going on with their bodies. i want to be the one who does the ultrasound AND tells the patient the good and/or bad news. is that what a ultrasound technician does or would i have to get a degree in ultrasound technology and one to become a physician. or am i totally wrong?

Answer: You cannot diagnose a patient, unless you are a doctor. A radiologist is a medical doctor who will interpert the ultrasound (and x-rays and MRI and CT scans etc) images, that are taken by a sonographer (aka ultrasonographer aka ultrasound technologist). The radiologist then issues an imaging report to the patient's referring physician. So you are correct, in a way. But, any physician can buy themselves an ultrasound machine and scan their patients theirselves....although I think it is a bad idea, actually. Sonographers and radiologist spend years learning ultrasounds, and it takes that amount of time to become sufficient.

Question: How much does it cost to go to a Ultrasound Technician vocational school? I'm trying to decide if it's more cheap to go to a vocational school or a regular college to become a ultrasound technician. Any help?

Answer: You can find top listing of ultrasound tech college courses in this site - findcollege.hotusa.org It also has info about each, tips to apply and which salary should you expect (to comparison)

Question: What type of schooling does it take to become an ultrasound technician? I am pondering a career as an ultrasound technician and I've heard that there is ways around actually having to get a degree and that you can just take a few special classes. How many years of schooling am I looking at?

Answer: That is absolutely wring . Ultrasound is the highest paid in medical imaging because we are the highest skilled . Ultraousnd doent need to be a degreed program , those most are . The program does need to be recognized by the ARDMS as an accreedited prgram . Attending a non-accredited program will put restrictions on your taking the regiarty/board exams...non-accredited program graduates are often not even considered eligible to even apply to take the board for up to 2 years after graduations . Very few hospitals with accredited ultrasound labs will even hire a tech that is not registry eligible , as accredited labs are required to have all department techs RDMS registered...passed at least 2 boards , one in physocs , and one in a specialty) within 365 days of hire. Most accredited ultrasound programs start with about 20 students , and finish with half that number , garduating approximatel 7 to 8 technologists per program cycle. ARDMS.org has lsitings of accredited programs state by state.

Question: What are the daily tasks of a ultrasound technician? I have been thinking of becoming an ultrasound technician for a while now. I just want to get an idea of what working in that field would be like.

Answer: Ultrasound definitely entails more than just scanning pregnant women. We can also image the salivary glands, thyroid, carotid vessels of the neck, breasts, pancreas, liver, gallbladder and bile ducts, spleen, kidneys, urinary bladder, uterus, ovaries, testicles, prostate gland, aorta and vena cava, large arteries and veins in the arms and legs....have I missed anything? We can also ultrasound a palpable lump (one that can be felt from the outside of the body) which is located anywhere on the body. We can do ultrasound on newborn's stomachs to look for pyloric stenosis or the hips to look for dislocation. Sonographers also assist the radiologist with more invasive procedures. We do amniocentesis (using ultrasound to guide a needle into the pregnant uterus to remove fluid for testing), paracentisis (needle into abdomen to remove fluids for testing) and thoracentsis (needle into lungs to remove fluid). We assist the radiologist with ultrasound guided biopsies (breast, thyroid and liver). We assist the radiologist with hysterosonography (putting saline solution into the uterus to image the endometrial canal). We do some ultrasounds transabdominally (the transducer or camera outside the body), and others transabdominally or transrectally. I work at a free standing imaging center, so we are only open M-F, 8-5. No weekends, no holidays, no evenings, no night, no call. At most hospitals, the ultrasound department is staffed during the day (and sometimes the evenings), and then the sonographers rotate weekends. Most hospitals will make sure a sonographer is available (being on call) 24/7, when the department doesn't have a sonographer on site. You will eventually have to deal with finding an anencephalic fetus (brain hasn't developed and the baby WILL die shortly after birth). Finding an early miscarriage or tubal pregnancy is fairly common. But you will also scan women who have been trying for years to become pregnant, and are now carrying a normal pregnancy. You will be part of that excitement. You will find breast cancers in some patients, but then also be present in other cases where a woman finds out that her breast lump is a simple cyst. There are ups and downs. The best way to get an idea about the routine of a sonographer is to do an observation in an imaging department. Until you witness a department, you won't really have a good idea if this is a career for you or not. Best wishes....