1/23 Journal for Radiology

Questions

What were your responsibilities or duties this week?
-Observe what goes on during an ultrasound


What new knowledge or skill did you  learn this week?
-Learned how identify blockage in an artery on an ultrasound


What was the best thing that happened at the site this week?
- I got to see how one's blood flows in an ultrasound


What was the worst thing that happened at the site this week?
-There were no x-rays or MRIs. I only saw 2 ultrasounds


This week was FAIR.

Experience Record

Technology observed:
There were big ultrasound machines in the rooms. They consisted of the screen, a keyboard, and the probe. The probe was used on the patient, which sends high sound frequencies into the person which is then received and projected on the screen.


Diagnostic procedures observed:
The ultrasounds I saw were being used to re-assess the patients after one had a heart attack while another had a thrombus in one of their arteries. The procedure as a whole helped diagnose the patient again, to see new possible treatments.


Therapeutic procedures observed:
There were no therapeutic procedures due to the fact that ultrasounds are used to assist diagnose not heal.


Diseases/disorders observed:
I observed the reassessing of a patient who had a thrombus in an artery. Also the identifying of a big blood clot of a recent heart attack victim.


Medical terminology encountered:
Echocardiogram is a procedure where an ultrasound is used to examine the heart or blood vessels, in these cases it was for blood vessels.
Sonography, also known as Ultrasound, is the uses of sound waves to help visualize tendons, muscles, joints, organs, and tissues.

Journal

When I first arrived to the X-Ray office, there was nothing to do. I was passed to the ultrasound group of which there were about 5 or 6 personnel. When I entered a room where an ultrasound was taking place, the first thing to notice is that the room is dark. It is to assist in being able to see images on the screen of the ultrasound machine better. The machine itself is rather big as well. It took up a large portion of the room it was in. The rooms were clean from what I could see and the main features were the machine and the bed or table where the patient would be.

The personnel seemed rather nice. They were all very focus on their jobs. While imaging was going on there was not much talking at all, other than my questions. My questions were all answered very punctually which was good. Every now and then they would ask about moving the probe more in some direction but over all it was silent. In a way that just proved that they worked so well together that not much talking was needed. It also showed that lots of concentration is needed in taking Doppler Echocardiogram. The veins and arteries all blended into one black and white picture to me, which was confusing even when the personnel pointed out things to me.

I learned what a Doppler Echocardiogram was. It is when one uses the Doppler Effect to pick up the sound of blood flow when examining a blood vessel. It was very interesting if not confusing. the images were black and white, except when they were colored red or blue when the Doppler test was being used. Red meant that there was a large volume of blood flow while blue meant there was a low volume of blood flow. The sound of the blood flowing was also recorded and the force of the flowing helped dictate it.

I would have to say that Radiology was very interesting. Even though I only watched ultrasounds, that were not of babies sadly, it was really cool. The personnel were nice, if not direct and quiet. The procedures were also impressive in how much concentration is needed to find one little blocked artery.