The American Society of Radiologic Technologists has published a new webpage to support and promote the advanced practice radiation therapy career pathway. The website includes information about the career pathway, examples of advanced practice radiation therapists in clinical practice, current research on the role, continuing education resources and much more.

APRTs are experienced radiation therapists who perform clinical and patient care responsibilities, while also receiving training and specialization in additional areas of practice under the guidance of a radiation oncologist as part of the radiation oncology team.

"Evidence suggests the APRT service model enhances patient experience and treatment outcomes," said ASRT Vice President Marissa Mangrum, M.S.R.S., R.T.(T). "ASRT is leading the way in supporting this new APRT role with its radiation therapy members and collaborating organizations."

As the role of the APRT grows, ASRT will add materials to the page to ensure it includes up-to-date information.

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists is seeking qualified members interested in volunteer positions on the House of Delegates Minutes Approval Committee, Sergeant-at-Arms Committee and the Registered Radiologist Assistant Curriculum Revision Workgroup.

The duties, qualifications and time commitments required for these openings are available through the links below:

Please contact ASRT Volunteer Services at [email protected] with any questions or concerns.

To see all current positions available, visit the Open Volunteer Opportunities page.

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists launched the Magnetic Resonance Student Exam Assessment Library® comprehensive practice tests for members preparing for the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists MR imaging certification exam. The MR SEAL® practice tests can also be used as a tool for MR technologists studying for the Structured Self-Assessment as part of the ARRT Continuing Qualifications Requirement process.

Five MR SEAL exams are included with ASRT membership, with eight exams available for members with the Premium membership option. Each online practice test contains 100 questions, covers all major content areas of the certification exam and provides detailed feedback explaining each answer.

More exams are available for purchase in the ASRT Store at the member price of $10. Nonmembers may purchase all SEAL exams for $15 each.

The MR SEAL launch is the fourth SEAL offering in ASRT’s lineup of online practice tests, which includes radiography, radiation therapy and computed tomography exams.

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists would like to personally thank Sens. John Boozman, R-Ark., and Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., for their work in introducing the Medicare Access to Radiology Care Act of 2024.

The MARCA bill will ensure that all services provided by a radiologist assistant, supervised by a radiologist as part of a radiologist-led team, receive Medicare reimbursement, regardless of the setting in which the radiology service is provided.

The United States is currently experiencing a major shortage of medical imaging professionals. As such, it is vital for the nation to promote the value of medical imaging professionals and their role in providing patients with high-quality, safe care.

“The RA role is a career pathway for medical imaging professionals. It is critical that obstacles are removed to provide this essential health care professional with career advancement opportunities,” said ASRT CEO and Executive Director Melissa B. Pergola, Ed.D., R.T.(R)(M), FASRT, CAE.

Radiologic technology education program directors report the number of new students enrolled increased compared to 2023, according to the American Society of Radiologic Technologists Enrollment Enrollment Snapshot 2024.

Conducted annually, the survey highlights entering class enrollments, student capacity and program data that measures past trends, attrition and viability rates.

The 2024 survey results show that the number of enrolled radiography students increased, with an estimated 19,815 students entering American Registry of Radiologic Technologists-approved radiography programs, up from 17,679 in 2023.

Student enrollment in ARRT-approved radiation therapy programs is estimated at 1,663 students in 2024, up from 1,302 in 2023.

Nuclear medicine technology program enrollments also increased, with an estimated 1,403 students enrolling in 2024, up from 903 in 2023.

For the third consecutive year, the survey tracked enrollments in sonography and magnetic resonance imaging programs. In 2024, an estimated 5,511 students enrolled in ARRT-recognized sonography programs, up from 3,144 in 2023. And MR imaging programs enrolled an average of 1,004 students, an increase from 555 in 2023.

“The increases in enrollment are consistent with the high vacancy rates that we've seen in our recent staffing surveys. Through the presidential initiatives of Heather Moore, Ph.D., R.T.(R), ASRT is continuing to take action that raises visibility and increases the pipeline into the medical imaging and radiation therapy profession,” said Melissa Culp, M.Ed., R.T.(R)(MR), ASRT executive vice president of member engagement.

ASRT sent the survey to 1,263 directors of radiography, radiation therapy, nuclear medicine technology, sonography and MR imaging programs currently approved by the ARRT. By the close of the survey in early November, ASRT received 412 responses, yielding an overall response rate of 32.6%. This sample size yields a ±4.0% margin of error at its widest for overall percentages at the 95% confidence level. The ASRT began conducting the survey in 2001.

Enrollment Snapshot 2024

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists is seeking qualified ASRT members interested in volunteer positions on the Practice Standards Council Modality Subcommittees, Scanner Editorial Advisory Panel and Committee on the Student to Leadership Development Program.

The duties, qualifications and time commitments required for these openings are available through the links below:

Please contact ASRT Volunteer Services at [email protected] with any questions or concerns.

To see all current positions available, visit the Open Volunteer Opportunities page.

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists has donated $5,000 to the American Red Cross to assist with wildfire disaster relief efforts in the greater Los Angeles area. The donation is being made on behalf of ASRT’s 156,000 members.

"The wildfires in the Los Angeles area are unprecedented and communities are in need of immediate support," said ASRT President Heather Moore, Ph.D., R.T.(R). "ASRT’s Red Cross donation will go toward helping Californians get assistance during this extremely difficult period."

ASRT currently has nearly 2,500 members who live and work in the greater Los Angeles area.

The Red Cross is working with its partners on the ground to mobilize relief supplies and disaster workers and is coordinating with local and state officials to support people in need.

"We need to remember that medical imaging and radiation therapy professionals in Los Angeles continue to provide care for individuals affected by this horrible tragedy, and they also have to manage their own lives as area residents,” said ASRT CEO and Executive Director Melissa B. Pergola, Ed.D., R.T.(R)(M), FASRT, CAE. "As a result, we want to provide as much support as possible for our members, their families and the community."

If you have been affected by the wildfires in the Los Angeles area and need assistance with ASRT membership and benefits, please call ASRT Member Services at 1-800-444-2778 from 7 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Mountain time, Monday-Friday.

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists is coleading two workgroups and leading one workgroup to create action plans to increase the medical imaging and radiation therapy workforce and promote the profession.

The ASRT-led consensus committee workgroups are focused on sustainable action to address workforce shortages by defining the levels and roles for each step in the career pathway for radiation therapy and medical dosimetry, and by creating intersocietal efforts that raise awareness of multiple roles within radiology and radiation oncology, including medical imaging and radiation therapy professionals, physicians and medical physicists.

The workgroups formed after the Consensus Committee on the Future of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy meeting, which was hosted by ASRT, the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists and the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology in February 2024. The committee's work resulted in the White Paper from the 2024 Consensus Committee on the Future of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy, which outlines strategies to address the workforce shortage, strengthen the profession and build career pathways for professionals.

The ASRT-led consensus workgroups, include appointees from the ASRT, Advanced Practice Radiation Therapy Working Group, American Association of Medical Dosimetrists, American Association of Physicists in Medicine, American College of Radiology, ARRT, American Society for Radiation Oncology, Elekta, JRCERT, Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging Technologist Section, Society for Radiation Oncology Administrators and Varian.

"The level of buy-in from the supporting organizations has been truly inspiring," said ASRT CEO and Executive Director Melissa B. Pergola, Ed.D., R.T.(R)(M), FASRT, CAE.

The work is scheduled to occur in three phases with the first phase that addresses creating a project plan to tentatively be completed by June 1, 2025.

The ASRT is seeking qualified members interested in volunteer positions on the Radiation Therapist Editorial Review Board and the Radiologic Technology Editorial Review Board.

The duties, qualifications and time commitments required for these openings are available through the link below:

Please contact ASRT Volunteer Services at [email protected] with any questions or concerns.

To see all current positions available, visit the Open Volunteer Opportunities page.

• To increase access to world-class radiography training in underserved countries worldwide
• To build capacity to address the critical shortage of radiographers in low-resource settings
• To create a vendor-neutral training curriculum to serve specific local needs.

Siemens Healthineers and the American Society of Radiologic Technologists will expand an existing partnership to bring top-quality training for radiologic technologists, or radiographers, to underserved countries around the world for the first time. Educating radiographers to operate imaging or radiation therapy equipment is crucial, as the machines enable physicians to diagnose and treat diseases including cancer and cardiovascular disease. Such noncommunicable diseases already account for 74% of all deaths globally, with more than three-quarters in low- and middle-income countries.

The multiyear partnership will make ASRT’s curriculum and educational content, which are regarded as an industry gold standard, available for foundational and advanced training in both in-person and virtual forms. Training will be vendor-neutral for as broad an impact as possible. ASRT, founded more than 100 years ago, is the largest association for medical imaging and radiation therapy professionals in the world. Siemens Healthineers, which has activities in more than 180 countries, will bring local know-how so that content can be tailored to local circumstances or requirements. This builds on an existing 30-year partnership which included Siemens Healthineers as a charter partner of the ASRT Foundation Corporate Roundtable and supporter of a clinical advancement scholarship program. One of the first activities under the extended partnership will be to jointly develop a curriculum to train 50 radiographers from Ukraine. The training will be delivered in hybrid form—in person at the Siemens Healthineers Academy in Poland and online over the next two years.

“Too often in low-resource countries, medical equipment sits unused—often still in its original packaging—because no one is trained to use it,” said Hagen Weissapfel, head of Education and Service, Siemens Healthineers Access to Care. “We recognize that skilled people are the backbone of any health care system, and that building workforce capacity is key.”

Workforce shortages affect healthcare systems across the world, but scarcity in low- and middle-income countries is severe. In high-income countries there are 93 radiologists per million people, but Sub-Saharan Africa has only two per million, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency. Building capacity is crucial, and Siemens Healthineers is committed to providing 6 million hours of training by 2030 as part of new sustainability targets announced in November.

“ASRT’s mission is to advance and elevate the medical imaging and radiation therapy profession and to enhance the quality and safety of patient care,” said Melissa Culp, head of Member Engagement at ASRT. “With our colleagues at Siemens Healthineers, we are raising awareness of the profession, ensuring high standards of educational preparedness and strengthening the workforce pipeline globally.”

Siemens Healthineers pioneers breakthroughs in healthcare. For everyone. Everywhere. Sustainably. The company is a global provider of healthcare equipment, solutions and services, with activities in more than 180 countries and direct representation in more than 70. The group comprises Siemens Healthineers AG, listed as SHL in Frankfurt, Germany, and its subsidiaries. As a leading medical technology company, Siemens Healthineers is committed to improving access to healthcare for underserved communities worldwide and is striving to overcome the most threatening diseases. The company is principally active in the areas of imaging, diagnostics, cancer care and minimally invasive therapies, augmented by digital technology and artificial intelligence. In fiscal 2024, which ended on September 30, 2024, Siemens Healthineers had approximately 72,000 employees worldwide and generated revenue of around €22.4 billion. Further information is available at www.siemens-healthineers.com.

The American Society of Radiologic Technologists is the world's largest and oldest membership association for medical imaging technologists and radiation therapists. Founded in 1920, the ASRT now has more than 156,000 members. Its business office is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The mission of the American Society of Radiologic Technologists is to advance and elevate the medical imaging and radiation therapy profession and to enhance the quality and safety of patient care. The American Society of Radiologic Technologists will be the premier professional association for the medical imaging and radiation therapy community through education, advocacy, research and innovation. Further information is available at www.asrt.org.