Free Health Essays - Best Practice In Radiography
Although radiation is often conceptually associated with war, nuclear weapons, or contamination of the environment, in actuality radioactive materials are used every day at construction sites and paper companies, and particularly in medical offices and hospitals. In this analysis, the concept of radiography focuses on the dangers associated with industrial and medical radiography sources. The term “source” is defined by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as “any source of radiation or a radiography source in particular.”
Even in the UK, with its educational and socioeconomic advantages, fatal accidents involving lost radiation sources may occur. The key to minimizing the dangers that radioactive materials inherently pose may lie in the development of a general baseline of knowledge about radiation and radioactive materials among the general public.
Specific health legislation enjoys the full panoply of criminal statutes apply rigorously to health practitioners as to anyone else. In the United Kingdom, there is a marked preference for professions to be regulated by statutory self-regulation. This means that the profession is recognized, and protected, by statute, with only people registered within a statutory registration scheme enjoying professional privileges. Statutes of this kind operate by creating primary statute professions can properly be regarded as statutorily self-regulating, since the professionals themselves supply the content and detail of the regulations. Health care professionals have been statutorily regulated, with a view to seeing whether these might provide us with a useful model for complementary medicine. We must remember, however, that simply because health care professions have tended to be regulated by statute, this does not mean that this model is at all appropriate for the diverse range of therapies that make up complementary medicine. All complementary therapists who are considering setting up in practice must have a basic understanding of employment law, insurance law, partnership law, occupiers' liability, and such other legal provisions as may be appropriate to their practice.
(Complementary Medicine and the Law, Joan Matthews, author, Julie Stone, 1996, p. 127.)
A general practice can be viewed in various ways. It can refer to a surgery building, a team of professionals or a model of organization. We examine how premises, staffing, activities, and finances have changed under different policy regimes, which have shaped the local strategy and response of family doctors. As far as its practice is concerned Radiography importance lies in the necessity of using ionized and non-ionized radiations to achieve a satisfactory health. Most of the Radiographers after recognizing radiography as diagnostic or therapeutic treat the patient keeping in view with the current conditions of his health. A therapeutic radiographer is usually involved in every aspect of the treatment, including pre-treatment preparation, planning, the treatment itself and the review or follow-up stages. Skills needed to become a therapy radiographer include good interpersonal skills to communicate with other members of the team and to provide support for patients who may be frightened or uncertain about what is going to happen. Therapy radiographers in particular get to know patients because they see them regularly through the course of treatment. It is important they can develop a bond with the individual and their family. Accurate documentation and characterizing different fracture systems is also required by a radiographer, which if not been fractured professionally, these fractured patterns appear like void spaces which temper spatial distribution, and are probably less helpful for sorting shreds by their parent vessels with certainty in most assemblages of household-made ceramics, and are probably used best as supplementary criteria. Fractures in a vessel can be distributed unevenly in occurrence or frequency among its shreds. This can result, for example, from the uneven distribution of thermal stresses over the vessel during its open firing or use in cooking, or from the localization of impact or post depositional deformation stresses.
A Radiographer practice is concerned about different radiations treatments with respect to the different procedures, which are to be given to the patients after the interpretation of disease, analyzing the current healing position and researching through a wide process of medicinal therapy. The most sensitive aspect which a Radiographer has to keep in mind while attending to a patient is that he alone is responsible for the therapeutic radiations, the medicinal amount of dosage given while keeping in view two points: the patients sensitivity towards radiations and the behavior which he is having genetically.
In general practice, due to changing morbidity patterns, improved therapeutic options, and access to technology. The introduction of antibiotics greatly increased the effectiveness of treatment for common infectious diseases, and the rise of the contraceptive pill created a new area of prescribing and activity in general practice. As most practices acquired electrocardiograms and gained open access to radiography and laboratory services, it became possible to manage conditions in general practice, which had previously been the province of hospital medicine.When we talk about the professional models or definitions of good practice, which affect aspirations and professional identity presented to them by patients. Starting from this low base, a number of general practitioners began to question the assumptions that lay beneath these attitudes. General practitioners began to develop their own ideology and sense of identity, with their own particular skills needing specific training. They knew the strategies which are to be adopted in dealing with patients, the alternatives which they are supposed to keep on the other hand and the evaluation of their patients situation after going through the treatment of Radiography. Although the new ideology of general practice influenced the development of organizational structures, these structures in turn had an effect on the ideology. Practices became larger, encouraged by incentives for doctors to work in groups and by subsidies for staff and premises.
Enhanced later developments have improved the facilities for radiographic either as a theoretical study or as a practical implementation and have provided for greater variations in the position of the patient. Major vertical positions for radiographic studies are possible and most modern tables include devices for elevating or lowering the table for the convenience of the surgeon. Consider an example of detecting Kidneys mobility using modern Radiographic equipment as mentioned:
1. Leg rests should be so arranged as to bring the patient into the most suitable position for examination, and yet provide for his comfort.
2. Convenient and comfortable working positions for the surgeon are important and are provided by a table that makes possible easy raising or lowering as well as tipping at either end.
3. The diaphragm should be so located in the table as to make a change in position unnecessary for radiographic studies.
4. The x-ray tube stand should be fixed to the table and should move with it.
5. Provision for deep Trendelenburg and the vertical positions is necessary in order to detect the mobility of the kidneys.
(Medical Physics, Otto Glasser, Year Book Publishers, 1944, p.301).
Radiographic practice is unique in the sense that a radiographer alone is responsible for the treatment and coverage given to the patient, even some radiographers are so motivated towards their profession they have interests as radiographers in private practice, who purchased, operated and maintained X-ray apparatus themselves and who were therefore keen to retain a degree of autonomy from the medical profession. It was still the case that doctors could and frequently did by-pass radiologists and request radiographic information from radiographers in private practice.
The advent of the radiologist and the successful incorporation of the skill of interpreting the radiograph within the medical diagnostic process had served to de-skill the radiographer in private practice. During the 1920s the medically trained and qualified radiologist became a more familiar sight in hospitals, and the younger generation of medical practitioners increasingly consulted hospital radiologists rather than use the services of a radiographer in private practice.
The Society of Radiographers came to represent the interests of radiographers employed in hospitals, as distinct from self-employed radiographers in private practice, whose interests had been represented by the Institution of Electrical Engineers. Women were to be found largely in hospital radiography departments, engaged in the practice of radiography within an employment relationship rather than as independent practitioners.
Radiographic practice involves a unique kind of motivated professionals, which are supposed to fulfill the demanding needs of radiographic profession. As a radiographic therapist one has to prepare himself to work 24 hours a day without any break, caring and dealing a patient with extra care and caress, not only concerning about patient’s health but sometimes get personal so as to gain confidence of the patient. Radiographers have to maintain their attitude as a quick decision maker with ensurity that the patient’s correct diagnostic and examination has been carried out.
Radiographers are not only responsible for the physical well being of their patients but they also have to understand their psychological state of mind.
A responsible and professional Radiographer before doing any treatment should seek:
1. The patient’s actual problem, which leads him to the treatment of Radiography.
2. The patient’s previous clinical history.
3. The patient’s role in dealing with his problem, whether he is serious to resolve the issue or not.
4. To which extent he needs the clinical treatment after examining for any radiographic treatment.
5. Is the patient ready by all means to cope up with the radiographer with respect to his treatment? Determine the patient’s sensitivity.
6. Discuss each and every aspect of clinical treatment with the patient so as to gain his confidence.
7. Keep every equipment hygiene and up to date, manage time effectively.
Medical Radiography.
It is almost impossible to condense into table form all the variable factors, which affect the taking of a clinical radiograph. Added to the large number of X-ray tubes with different ratings, there is the variation in calibration of machines and difference in size of patients, as well as the preference of the attending physician in matters of film density, contrast, etc. Nor is it practical for a technician to learn the correct position for the patient in various pictures except through actual observation. As an example of the variation in X-ray tube ratings and their effect on technique, an instance may be cited. The General Electric X-ray Co. recommends the following factors for radiography of the kidney with two of their tubes: With one, tube the exposure is given as 100 ma. at 50 kilovolts for 2 sec. at a distance of 36 in., while with another the technique is 60 ma. at 56 kilovolts for 2 sec. at 30 in. Also the technician or doctor in charge of the X-ray department may find that some other combination of factors produces a radiograph more to their liking. The operative technique chart with accompanying remarks shows the procedure for one particular model X-ray unit and tube.
Developing a systematic plan requires understanding the stages of a source's life cycle and the security measures in place at each stage. The first stage is the production of the radioisotopes that power radioactive sources. Such radioisotopes are made either in nuclear reactors or in particle accelerators. Reactor-produced radioisotopes present a greater security risk because they typically have longer half-lives and are generated in larger quantities. Government-required security standards are typically in place at the reactor sites, but the United States is not a leading producer of commercial radioisotopes at reactors. The next stage involves placing radioisotopes into radioactive sources and manufacturing the equipment that will contain the sources. Sources are shipped to hospitals, universities, food irradiation facilities, oil well drilling sites, industrial radiography facilities, and other venues. Security practices vary according to the type of facility and activity. Food irradiation plants, which employ highly radioactive materials, probably have tighter security than hospitals, for example. Security is of particular concern in the oil industry, which often transports radioactive sources across borders. Some radioactive sources pass through yet another phase if they are shipped overseas.
A radioactive source eventually becomes ineffective as its potency declines, but the “disused” source might still contain potent amounts of radioactivity. Ideally, users would dispose of or recycle such sources quickly, but because disposal is expensive and proper facilities are few, users often hold on to their sources. Not all source manufacturers provide disposal or recycling services, so the government also must provide safe and secure disposal sites. The current disposal system in the United Kingdom is in dire need of repair.
Other issues attend the shipment of sources between stages of their life cycle. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) regulates shipments within the United States, adjusting security measures according to the size of the shipment. Labeling and packaging requirements provide for the protection of transportation workers and bystanders both in routine transit and under accident conditions. DOT sets packaging specifications for small quantities of radioactive material, and the NRC is responsible for large quantities. Although the security measures for large, highly radioactive shipments are reportedly stringent, both industry and parts of the government have resisted implementing improved security efforts such as background checks of drivers and adequate arming of guards.
Conclusion
Commonly recognized use for radioactive sources is in the medical field. Radiation sources are commonly used in the medical field for X-rays and cancer treatment. In this study, the focus is on the use of sources designed for cancer treatment and industry. When used under the proper guidelines, industrial and medical radiation sources can greatly benefit mankind. For several years, we have been trying to understand what constitutes radiological expertise and how that expertise is acquired. Our goal is to understand the learning of a complex skill and thereby to stretch the limits of existing knowledge about expertise and its acquisition.
Radiological diagnosis is a particularly complex and difficult skill. It has a substantial perceptual component that is different in character from that of other domains, such as chess and physics, that have been previously studied: It involves substantial amounts both of principled knowledge that is already formalized and of knowledge that can be gained only from clinical experience, going far beyond the formal scientific knowledge underlying medicine. It involves the integration of several distinct bodies of knowledge with separate organizing principles, including physiology, anatomy, medical theories of disease, and the projective geometry of radiography. Moreover, formal training in the domain is relatively standardized through residency programs, so that it is possible to trace some aspects of the course of acquisition of the skill as well as the course of instruction.
Bibliography
Otto Glasser, 1944, Medical Physics, Year Book Publishers, Chicago.
John Horder, 1998, General Practice under the National Health Service 1948-1997,Clarendon Press, London.
2005, Technical Skills Combined with Hands-On Care. Newspaper Title: Evening Chronicle, MGN Ltd Gale Group.
Charles D. Ferguson, Joel O. Lubenau, 2003, Securing U.S. Radioactive Sources, Magazine: Issues in Science and Technology, National Academy of Sciences Gale Group
Complementary Medicine and the Law, Joan Matthews, author, Julie Stone, 1996, p. 127
