Hiatal Hernia
As a working tech, I'll get to see a variety of interesting x-ray images, and I hope to collect some of them for discussion purposes. This will give me an opportunity to study them in more detail and share them with you as well.
Recently, I was working with a student on a chest x-ray when we stumbled upon this rather intriguing image. In my limited experience, I have never seen a hiatal (or hiatus) hernia this large. In this x-ray, it's very well-definied by the air-fluid level present.
What is a hiatal hernia?
Wikipedia has a nice entry on the Hiatus Hernia if you want to take a look at it there, but a hiatal hernia is a condition where a portion of the stomach protrudes into the chest cavity through the diaphragm.
Keeping up with the Markers
I stopped by the school a couple weeks ago and snagged a couple pieces of old exposed x-ray film from the lab. I cut them to about the same width and twice the length of my ID badge and poked a hole so I could attach it to my badge holder. This works really well for holding my markers and keeping the sticky tape mess off of my name badge holder. So far, this is working pretty well. My two markers with the copper backing are on the back side of this film.
I'm getting some time in the hospital in the morning. I get a 4-hour shift from 7-11, and I'll get to work that short shift again on Saturday and Sunday over the Thanksgiving weekend. I'm looking forward to this. I'll get to check out the new digital portable units the hospital purchased after my last clinical rotation...
Wrapping up my first week
I can't begin to describe how great this week has been for me. My new part-time job has been closer to full-time for my first week back in the saddle. I worked a half day on Monday and then full days on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. I was really worried about how rusty I might be after being out of the radiology department for over five months, but it's all coming back to me nicely. I have been keeping notes on some specific things where I need a little refresher, and I plan to do some reading and studying a little over the weekend. I haven't really seen much of a variety of exams this week though. It seems like everyone with a cough is getting chest x-rays this week, and I have probably done 20 of those, if not more. I have had a couple Upper GIs, a couple Small Bowels, and I think there is a BE on the schedule for Friday morning.
I finally got fed up with my el-cheap-o lead markers that I have been using throughout clinicals in school. They aren't really that cheap though. They are about $13 per set, which is the same price as the aluminum-backed marker set I just ordered. I got a standard pair and a second pair with copper backing for higher kVp applications.
This marker set was $26.30 from http://www.thomascorp.com (T-Model). Hopefully they will arrive in the next week or 10 days. One of my fellow techs uses these markers, and I did some experiments with them today. His markers without the copper backing held up as well as mine with the copper backing. My markers without the copper backing will simply not hold up on chest or shoulder x-rays unless I place them in the shadow of the anatomy somewhere. Using them during cross-table shots during a BE is just pointless. Hopefully these new markers will take care of business... Remind me to post an update on that... The problem markers are the ones I was told to buy as a student. We were asked to buy two sets so we would have a backup in the event of losing one, which makes sense. What makes sense NOW is to buy the two sets in the photo above since they are the same price as the ones I don't like anymore...
One of the other fun aspects of my job is that I'm working with students. When I was a student, I always told myself that if I got the chance to work with students, I would be helpful to them. I had certain techs who were not helpful to me as a student, and I simply don't want a student to EVER to back to school and complain about me the same way I heard my fellow students (and myself occasionally) complain about techs in the field. One of the students I worked with today was experiencing her very first day of clinical. She has a few fears that I'm going to attempt to relieve while I'm working with her. I'm also going to help her get her required comps for this semester completed... It should be fun :)
First Day
Well, it's finally here. I'm finally 'working' as a Radiographic Technologist. I spent several hours this morning sitting in orientation sessions, getting finger printed, getting my ID badge, and filling out paperwork. After lunch, I got to work for a half day. Under normal circumstances, my part-time job is 'very' part-time. I'll only be working from 8:00 - 4:30 on Thursdays. This week, I'm going to get some extra time because the lead tech is on vacation. I got to work 4 hours today and I'll get to work all day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. That should give me plenty of time to re-familiarize myself with the equipment and systems at this site. Lucikly, I spent 2 and a half days a week for 10 weeks at this location as part of my clinical education, so I'm familiar with everything here.
I still want to replace my lead markers, and I need to find a couple of decent ID badge holders too, so I'm going shopping online before I hit the sack tonight... Where is a good place to buy accessory junk like badge holders?
Tomorrow, I'm not working at all... in the X-ray job or for the newspaper, so I'm going to try to find something interesting to do!
