"The nuclear medicine community has been working for years
with representatives from both the Department of Homeland Security
and the Department of Transportation to help them understand how
patients can set off the detectors after treatment and to make recommendations
about how to deal with that situation," said Royal. When it comes
to nuclear medicine and stress-free travel, SNM says the public
should keep in mind the following advice.
# Preplan.
To avoid any difficulties, patients should choose to schedule travel
after nuclear medicine procedures, based on the specific radioisotope
received and the length of time it remains detectable.
# Know what radioisotope has been used in the treatment or study.
Commonly used radioisotopes that could set off radiation monitors,
each with its own "half-life" or period of continuing radioactivity,
include technetium-99m (Tc-99m), fluorine-18 (FDG) and thallium-201
(Tl-201). Most recent problems with radiation monitors have been
with the use of iodine-131 (I-131), which is used to treat hyperthyroidism,
thyroid cancer and lymphoma.
Most nuclear medicine studies are performed with Tc-99m, which should
not be detectable by sensitive radiation monitors three or four
days after a test.
FDG is the most common radioisotope used with PET imaging, and it
should be undetectable one day after a test.
Myocardial perfusion (blood flow) imaging can be performed with
TC-99m or Tl-201 or a combination of both. Be sure to confirm which
radioisotope has been used in your study. Tl-201 may remain detectable
for 30 days.
A majority of security incidents with radiation monitors have involved
treatment doses of I-131. This radioisotope may be detectable for
as long as three months after treatment.
# Patients and health care providers should discuss how long patients
may emit detectable radiation following treatment.
# Patients should obtain a letter from their doctors that contains
the following information: the patient's name, contact information
for the testing facility, the name of nuclear medicine procedure,
the date of the treatment or test, the radionuclide that was used,
its half-life, its administered activity and 24-hour contact information.
# Patients should let their doctors know if security personnel stop
them after triggering radiation devices. SNM asks that doctors report
such incidents so the society may be able to identify and help educate
specific authorities.
More Americans are receiving nuclear medicine treatments and tests.
Every major hospital in this country has a nuclear medicine department,
and last year, 19.7 million nuclear medicine procedures were performed
on 17.2 million women, men and children in more than 7,200 medical
sites in the United States--a 15 percent increase from four years
ago. For more information about nuclear medicine, please visit SNM's
Web site at http://www.snm.org/.
###
About SNM--Advancing Molecular Imaging and Therapy
SNM is an international scientific and professional organization
of more than 16,000 members dedicated to promoting the science,
technology and practical applications of molecular and nuclear imaging
to diagnose, manage and treat diseases in women, men and children.
Founded more than 50 years ago, SNM continues to provide essential
resources for health care practitioners and patients; publish the
most prominent peer-reviewed journal in the field (the Journal of
Nuclear Medicine); host the premier annual meeting for medical imaging;
sponsor research grants, fellowships and awards; and train physicians,
technologists, scientists, physicists, chemists and radiopharmacists
in state-of-the-art imaging procedures and advances. SNM members
have introduced--and continue to explore--biological and technological
innovations in medicine that noninvasively investigate the molecular
basis of diseases, benefiting countless generations of patients.
SNM is based in Reston, Va.; additional information can be found
online at http://www.snm.org/.
Contact: Maryann Verrillo
Society of Nuclear Medicine
Bright Future For Nuclear Medicine Technologists
Main Category: Radiology / Nuclear Medicine News
Article Date: 20 Nov 2006 - 2:00 PST
The future looks bright for nuclear medicine technologists. Technologists
enjoy their jobs, find their salaries near the top of the scale
for professions with similar educational requirements, are well
educated and remain poised for continuing growth and change. These
facts are gleaned from a recent survey sponsored by SNMTS, a scientific
organization that promotes continued development and improvement
of the art and science of molecular imaging, nuclear medicine and
technology.
"The study, 'Nuclear Medicine Technologists in the United
States: Findings From a 2005 Survey,' provides the most comprehensive
picture of nuclear medicine technologists ever developed and contains
information about demographic characteristics, education, employment,
career paths and attitudes about the profession," explained
SNMTS President D. Scott Holbrook. "By conducting this survey,
SNMTS can learn more about the thoughts, opinions and challenges
of technologists so its leaders can make more informed decisions
and better meet current and future needs," he added. "With
this information, we will be able to take the lead in determining
how the nuclear medicine technologists of today may broaden their
scope to become the imaging specialists or molecular imaging technologists
of the future," said Holbrook, who represents nearly 8,000
nuclear medicine technologists who are employed in hospitals, universities,
medical clinics and research centers across the United States and
abroad.
"More than 2,200 nuclear medicine technologists (certified
either by the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification Board and/or
the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists) responded to
a 60-question survey concerning multiple aspects of the profession,"
said Anthony Knight, who chaired the SNMTS Advisory Committee for
the survey. In looking at the future, the findings note that 6 out
of 10 (60.5 percent) technologists expect to remain in their current
positions for the next five years, he said. A majority (53.3 percent)
indicated that additional training would be necessary to continue
their work, said Knight. Technologists identified a need for training
in computed tomography (19.5 percent), PET/CT (37.7 percent), SPECT/CT
(13.1 percent), magnetic resonance imaging (3 percent) and mammography/PET
(1.2 percent).
Below are some findings from the survey.
* Salaries: The average total salary of full-time technologists
(including wages from being "on call") is $70,470. Nuclear
medicine technologists working with fusion imaging (such as PET/CT)
earn higher salaries than those working in general nuclear medicine.
Average total salaries are highest in the West ($82,890) and the
Mid-Atlantic region ($71,260); the lowest average salaries are found
in the Mountain ($60,690) and Mid-West ($63,210) states.
* Job satisfaction: A majority (53.7 percent) of respondents are
very satisfied with their jobs, and nearly 19 out of 20 respondents
(94 percent) are very or somewhat satisfied with their jobs.
* Geographical location: The number of certified technologists
per states' populations varies greatly, with large numbers in states
like Nebraska, South Dakota and West Virginia and the smallest concentration
in Oklahoma and Nevada.
* Demographics: The majority of technologists (74.6 percent) are
involved in general nuclear medicine practice, while a few (4.6
percent) spend time working with other modalities, including PET,
PET/CT and SPECT/CT. The majority of certified technologists work
in hospitals or medical centers (54.8 percent), while 15.9 percent
work in cardiology specialty centers. The profession is gender diverse
compared to most allied health profession, with the majority of
active nuclear medicine technologists being women who are in their
mid-forties. * Education: More than 9 out of 10 nuclear medicine
technologists indicated they had completed some college education,
and nearly a third expect to pursue additional academic education
(an acknowledgement of the rapid evolution of nuclear medicine and
molecular imaging).
* Certification and licensure: About 70 percent of the respondents
indicated that their home states require them to hold a license,
pointing to the need to increase the professional standing of the
profession in all states. In addition, nuclear medicine technologists
are keenly aware of how quickly the profession is changing, indicating
that the introduction of new imaging technologies results in changing
responsibilities. The report notes some coming trends, including
the evolution of medical imaging, the increasing importance of fusion
imaging technologies and the shift of nuclear medicine practice
toward cardiologists, oncologists and other specialists. The study
also provides recommendations for the profession. These recommendations
include that technologists must pursue licensure in all states to
serve the needs and protect the safety of the public; promote standardized,
legislated legal scope of practice for technologists; augment the
knowledge base and skill sets to include fusion imaging with the
latest technologies; track closely the work of scientists and industry
on new imaging technologies and adjust educational programs as needed;
and work to increase the number of certified technologists in all
states in this country.
Nuclear medicine technologists are highly specialized health care
professionals who perform an integral role on the nuclear medicine/molecular
imaging team in diagnosing and treating disease, working with physicians,
patients, physicists, nuclear pharmacists, computer specialists,
nurses, secretaries and other health care professionals. They have
direct patient contact; prepare, calibrate and administer radiopharmaceuticals;
perform patient imaging procedures (including computer processing);
operate imaging, lab and computer instrumentation; and ensure radiation
safety.
The Center for Health Workforce Studies at the University of Albany
conducted the survey and prepared the 158-page "Nuclear Medicine
Technologists in the United States: Findings From a 2005 Survey."
Complete survey results are located on SNM's Web site at http://www.snm.org/
(click on the Research and Data link). The report's executive summary
will be published in the December Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology.
###
About SNM--Advancing Molecular Imaging and Therapy
SNM is an international scientific and professional organization
of more than 16,000 members dedicated to promoting the science,
technology and practical applications of molecular and nuclear imaging
to diagnose, manage and treat diseases in women, men and children.
Founded more than 50 years ago, SNM continues to provide essential
resources for health care practitioners and patients; publish the
most prominent peer-reviewed resource in the field; sponsor research
grants, fellowships and awards; host the premier annual meeting
for medical imaging; and train physicians, technologists, scientists,
physicists, chemists and radiopharmacists in state-of-the-art imaging
procedures and advances. SNM members have introduced--and continue
to explore--biological and technological innovations in medicine
that noninvasively investigate the molecular basis of diseases,
benefiting countless generations of patients.
SNM's Technologist Section is a scientific organization formed
with--but operating autonomously from--SNM. SNMTS promotes the continued
development and improvement of the art and science of nuclear medicine
and technology. SNM is based in Reston, Va.; additional information
can be found online at http://www.snm.org/.
Contact: Maryann Verrillo
Society of Nuclear Medicine
Free Access To Journal Of Nuclear Medicine Offered By Society Of
Nuclear Medicine
Main Category: Radiology / Nuclear Medicine News
Article Date: 08 Sep 2006 - 9:00 PST
SNM announced today that its flagship Journal of Nuclear Medicine
and the Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology have moved to an
open access publishing model, providing free, full-text online articles
12 months after publication.
"This represents a significant step toward maximum dissemination
of significant, scholarly, peer-reviewed research of interest to
the nuclear medicine, molecular imaging, and therapy community,"
said SNM President Martin P. Sandler, the associate vice chancellor
for hospital affairs for Vanderbilt University Medical Center in
Nashville, Tenn. "JNM--with its worldwide circulation and high
impact and immediacy factors--is considered the most important and
influential international journal in molecular imaging and therapy
and nuclear medicine," said Sandler, who speaks for 16,000
physician, technologist and scientist society members. "Such
unrestricted access to scientific knowledge is bound to have a major
impact on medical practice and on promoting the benefits of molecular
imaging and therapy," added Sandler. "This move coincides
with the society's recent announcement of redefining its core mission
'to improve health care by advancing molecular imaging and therapy,'"
he added.
"With digital open access, users are free to read, download,
copy, distribute and print articles--with proper acknowledgement
and citation," said Heinrich R. Schelbert, JNM's editor in
chief. "This action speeds the delivery of important developments
and innovations that significantly impact disease recognition, staging
and management, thus expanding its audience to include medical researchers,
physicians, technologists, other health care providers, patients
and their advocates, students and the global public," said
Schelbert, professor of molecular and medical pharmacology at the
University of California at Los Angeles and the George V. Taplin
professor at the university's David Geffen School of Medicine.
"With this action, accessibility to journal articles continues
to remain high," said Beth A. Harkness, JNMT editor. "The
Internet provides an economical and efficient conduit for delivery
of important information," indicated Harkness, a physicist
in the radiology department of the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit,
Mich.
Since 1960, the monthly JNM has covered a broad spectrum of subjects
from basic science and chemistry investigations to clinical studies,
molecular biology, therapies, and advanced technologies, along with
continuing medical education articles, invited perspectives and
commentaries, procedure guidelines, book reviews and professional
news. JNM's articles are consistently ranked among the world's most
cited medical imaging research, and it is in the top 5 percent of
other publications in its category and the more than 6,000 publications
rated by the Thomson Institute for Scientific Information's Journal
Citation Report.
Published since 1973, JNMT is a quarterly, peer-reviewed publication
that focuses on technology, quality assurance, radiation safety,
expert perspectives and clinical applications of nuclear medicine
and molecular imaging.
SNM's board of directors approved the open access initiative at
its 53rd Annual Meeting in San Diego. Open access does not bypass
traditional publishing; rather, it is another form of access to
already published material. JNM and JNMT open access articles are
available on a Web site hosted by HighWire Press, a division of
the Stanford University Libraries and Academic Information Resources.
JNM and JNMT will be two of more than 800 scholarly journals posted
on that site (http://jnm.snmjournals.org/).
###
About SNM--Advancing Molecular Imaging and Therapy
SNM is an international scientific and professional organization
of more than 16,000 members dedicated to promoting the science,
technology and practical applications of molecular and nuclear imaging
to diagnose, manage and treat diseases in women, men and children.
Founded more than 50 years ago, SNM continues to provide essential
resources for health care practitioners and patients; publish the
most prominent peer-reviewed journal in the field (the Journal of
Nuclear Medicine); host the premier annual meeting for medical imaging;
sponsor research grants, fellowships and awards; and train physicians,
technologists, scientists, physicists, chemists and radiopharmacists
in state-of-the-art imaging procedures and advances. SNM members
have introduced--and continue to explore--biological and technological
innovations in medicine that noninvasively investigate the molecular
basis of diseases, benefiting countless generations of patients.
SNM is based in Reston, Va.; additional information can be found
online at http://www.snm.org/.
Contact: Maryann Verrillo
Society of Nuclear Medicine
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