Description

This unit group includes technologists who operate radiographic and radiation therapy equipment to administer radiation treatment and produce images of body structures for the diagnosis and treatment of injury and disease. They are employed in hospitals, cancer treatment centres, clinics and radiological laboratories. Medical radiation technologists who are supervisors or instructors are included in this unit group.

Included Job Titles

X-ray (radiology) technician, clinical instructor, radiation therapy, mammography technician, nuclear medicine clinical instructor, nuclear medicine technologist, radiation oncology technologist, radiation therapist, radiation therapy technologist (RTT), radiography technologist, radiological technologist, radiotherapy technician, supervisor, nuclear medicine technologists.

Job Duties

Radiological technologists perform some or all of the following duties:

• Operate X-ray, radiographic and fluoroscopic equipment, computerized tomography (CT) scanners, mammography units and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners to produce radiographs or anatomic images of the human body for the diagnosis by radiologists of disease or injury
• Record and process patient data
• Perform basic verification and quality control checks on radiographic and film processing equipment
• Provide appropriate care for the patient during the radiographic examination
• Apply radiation protection measures
• May train and supervise student radiographers or supervise other radiological technologists.

Radiological technologists may specialize in areas such as computerized tomography, angiography, mammography, magnetic resonance imaging, interventional radiology, dosimetry, stereotaxy or brachytherapy.

Nuclear medicine technologists perform some or all of the following duties:

• Prepare radiopharmaceuticals, such as radionuclides and other materials and administer them to patients or to biological samples
• Operate radiation detection equipment, such as gamma cameras, scanners, scintillation counters, tomodensitometers and ionization chambers, to acquire data for use by nuclear medicine physicians in the diagnosis of disease
• Perform diagnostic procedures using radioactive materials on biological specimens, such as blood, urine and faeces
• Record and process results of procedures
• Check equipment to ensure proper operation
• Provide appropriate care for the patient during the examination
• Apply radiation protection measures
• May train and supervise student nuclear medicine technologists or supervise other nuclear medicine technologists.

Radiation therapists perform some or all of the following duties:

• Operate linear accelerators, cobalt 60, X-ray and other radiation therapy equipment to administer radiation treatment prescribed by radiation oncologists
• Check radiation therapy equipment to ensure proper operation
• Assist radiation oncologists and clinical physicists with preparation of radiation treatment plan
• Assist in the preparation of sealed radioactive materials such as cobalt, radium, cesium and isotopes and the construction of devices such as plaster casts and acrylic moulds to assist with administration of radiation treatment
• Monitor the patient's physical and psychological well-being during the entire course of treatment
• Advise the patient regarding side effects of radiation
• May train and supervise student radiotherapy technologists or supervise other radiotherapy technologists.

Related Occupations

Included Cities in this region

Berwick, Bridgetown, Hantsport, Kentville, Middleton, Windsor, Wolfville

Service Canada Offices

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