Engine off.

Keys still in your hand.

Maybe you got there ten minutes early just so you could sit there in silence before going inside.

And somewhere between checking the time and telling yourself you need to get out of the car, the thought comes back.

I don’t know how much longer I want to do this.

Not healthcare.

Not necessarily radiology.

Just…this.

This shift.

This department.

This pace.

This version of your career.

Early in my career, I made the same mistake.

I thought being tired meant I was done.

Maybe you’re not trying to leave radiology

When you have spent years building a career in medical imaging, it can be hard to separate your profession from your job.

They start to feel like the same thing.

So when you become tired of the job, you start questioning the entire profession.

Maybe you don’t want to leave radiologic technology.

Maybe you want to leave nights.

Maybe you want to leave call.

Maybe you want to leave the department that has been short-staffed for so long that chaos now feels normal.

Maybe you want to leave a modality you chose years ago because it no longer fits the life you have now.

Maybe you are tired of working every holiday.

Maybe your body hurts.

Maybe you are bored.

Maybe you have become so good at your job that there is nowhere else for you to grow in that particular room.

Those are not small things.

But they are also not all the same thing as being done with medical imaging.

I wish more of us separated those questions sooner.

Because I didn’t.

I thought I was burned out on imaging

Early in my career, I remember reaching a point as a CT technologist where I thought I was burned out.

I knew I was tired.

What I didn’t know was exactly what I was tired of.

Was it CT?

Was it the place I was working?

Was I tired of imaging altogether?

Or did I just need something different?

At the time, I didn’t have the language for a “career pivot.”

I just knew I couldn’t see myself continuing exactly as I was.

And I think that’s where a lot of radiologic technologists get stuck.

We feel the exhaustion first.

Then we assume the profession must be the problem.

For me, it wasn’t.

I wasn’t tired of imaging. I was tired of the situation I was in.

I eventually moved into MRI, and that decision opened up another part of the profession for me.

But MRI wasn’t the end of the story either.

Once I stopped thinking my career had to look one particular way, I kept finding other ways to use what I knew.

I taught.

I worked in applications.

I built a staffing company.

I became a speaker.

I became a podcast host.

I wrote a children’s book about medical imaging.

None of those pivots required me to throw away the career I had already built and start over.

They came from it.

Looking back, that early point in CT taught me something I didn’t understand at the time:

Being tired of where you are is not always the same as being tired of what you do.

Sometimes the problem is the modality.

Sometimes it’s the schedule.

Sometimes it’s the employer, the environment, the lack of growth or simply the season of life you’re in.

And sometimes you don’t know which one it is until you stop asking, “Should I leave imaging?” and start asking:

“What exactly am I tired of?”

I’m glad I eventually figured out the difference.

Because if I had mistaken being done with that situation for being done with medical imaging, I might have walked away from a profession that still had a lot more room for me to grow.

This is what a career pivot can actually look like

[EMBED INSTAGRAM CAREER PIVOT VIDEO HERE]

Suggested caption beneath the embed:

A career pivot does not always mean leaving radiology. Sometimes it means identifying what no longer fits, then using the experience you already have in a different way.

This is where I would place your Instagram video.

Not at the top.

Not at the very end.

Right here.

Why? Because the reader has just heard your personal CT-to-MRI story and now has emotional context for the video. The embed becomes proof and continuation, not an interruption.

It also creates a visual break at roughly the point where a long-form reader may naturally pause.

Then the article moves from your story into what you started noticing in other people’s careers.

Then I started noticing people

I started paying attention to where other radiologic technologists went.

Not where they left for.

Where they went next.

Technologists became educators.

Applications specialists.

Managers.

Directors.

Safety leaders.

Consultants.

Business owners.

Industry professionals.

Healthcare executives.

I have sat in rooms with people whose current badge says something completely different from the title they started with.

VP.

Director.

Operations.

Leadership.

And somewhere underneath that title is still the person who once learned positioning, patient care, radiation safety, anatomy, protocols and how to make decisions when things did not go according to plan.

Their job changed.

Their title changed.

Their responsibilities changed.

But their experience did not disappear.

That’s when I realized something I probably should have understood much earlier.

They had stopped mistaking one job description for the whole profession.

We were taught how to get in

Most radiologic technologists were taught how to enter this profession.

Go to school.

Complete clinicals.

Pass your registry.

Get hired.

Then maybe move into CT.

Maybe MRI.

Maybe mammography.

Maybe become a lead.

Maybe become a manager.

There was a path.

And for a while, that path makes sense.

But what happens when the path stops fitting?

That’s where I think a lot of technologists get stuck.

Because nobody necessarily sat us down and said:

Here are all the ways you can use this career ten years from now.

Here are the jobs that exist outside of the imaging department.

Here are the roles where your clinical knowledge still matters even though you are not scanning every patient yourself.

Here are the people who started exactly where you are and ended up somewhere you did not even know existed.

We were taught how to get into radiology.

A lot of us were never taught how big it was once we got here.

Maybe that’s why so many of us think we’re stuck.

We keep searching for a different job when what we may actually need is a bigger picture of the profession.

So what are you actually trying to leave?

This is the question I wish more people asked before saying:

“I think I need to get out of radiology.”

Don’t answer “radiology” yet. Get more specific.

What are you actually trying to get away from?

The employer?

The shift?

The manager?

The modality?

The physical demands?

The patient load?

The lack of advancement?

The weekends?

The call schedule?

The pay ceiling?

The fact that you have been doing the same thing for fifteen years and you know you want more, even if you cannot quite name what “more” is yet?

Or are you truly finished with medical imaging?

That last answer is allowed too.

Sometimes people really do want a completely different career.

There is nothing wrong with that.

But there is a difference between wanting to leave a profession and wanting relief from the way you are currently experiencing it.

And I think too many technologists make a permanent decision while trying to solve a temporary—or at least more specific—problem.

I think we make the decision too big

We act like there are only two doors.

Stay.

Leave.

But careers are rarely that clean.

You can leave the job without leaving the profession.

You can leave the modality without leaving imaging.

You can leave direct patient care without throwing away everything you learned while doing it.

And yes, you can leave the profession completely if that is what you actually want.

The point is not that everyone should stay.

The point is that you should know what you are actually choosing between.

Because:

“I hate this job” and “I hate this profession” are not interchangeable sentences.

Maybe the career you want is still in here somewhere

The person you were when you became a radiologic technologist may not be the same person making career decisions today.

That matters.

At 25, you may have wanted every trauma case you could get.

At 35, you may want predictable hours.

At one point, being the strongest scanner in the department may have been enough.

Later, you may realize you would rather teach five technologists how to become stronger scanners themselves.

Maybe leadership makes more sense now.

Maybe applications.

Maybe education.

Maybe safety.

Maybe business.

Maybe something you have not been shown yet.

That is the part I keep coming back to.

You cannot aspire to a career you do not know exists.

And if the only version of radiologic technology you have ever seen is the job right in front of you, of course leaving can feel like the only option when that job stops working.

Maybe I needed to stop asking the wrong question

Early in my career, my question was basically:

Do I stay or do I leave?

Now I think the better question is:

What am I actually ready to change?

That question creates a lot more room.

Because maybe you are ready to leave.

But maybe you are only ready to move.

And there is a difference.

Maybe you’re reading this from that parking lot.

Maybe your keys are still in your hand.

Maybe you have five minutes before you need to clock in.

Before you decide the profession has nothing left for you, separate the job from the career.

You may be finished with this shift.

This department.

This modality.

This manager.

This version of your career.

That does not automatically mean you are finished with radiologic technology.

Maybe the career you built isn’t asking you to abandon it.

Maybe it is asking you to stop assuming there is only one way to belong to it.

If you’re trying to figure out what your next move in medical imaging could look like, subscribe to A Couple of Rad Techs. Each week, I write about the careers, pivots, people and possibilities inside this profession that many technologists were never shown.

And if you would rather hear the conversation, you can find A Couple of Rad Techs wherever you listen to podcasts:

🎧 Spotify link
🍎 Apple Podcasts link
📻 YouTube

Talk soon,
Chaun

P.S. — Forward this to the radiologic technologist in your group chat who’s been quietly wondering if it’s okay to want something different. It is.

Subscribe now

Imagine a bustling day in Philadelphia where a mobile mammogram machine rolls into an underserved community, bringing health services right to the doorstep of those who need it most. We dive into a heartfelt discussion about the importance of accessibility in healthcare, especially for women who often face barriers when it comes to getting screened for breast cancer. One of our guests shares a touching moment when a woman, after receiving her mammogram, immediately calls her mother, speaking in her native tongue, and urges her community to take action. It’s a powerful reminder that health awareness can spread through personal connections, not just through flashy ads or billboards. As we unpack this story, we highlight how this grassroots approach, fueled by community trust and familial bonds, can lead to a significant impact. This isn’t just about machines; it’s about empowering women and ensuring they know that caring for their health is a priority. Throughout the conversation, we touch on the stories of women who may not have had easy access to mammograms before this initiative. We discuss how this program doesn’t just provide a medical service, but also fosters a sense of community and support. It’s about breaking the stigma and starting conversations—because when one woman tells another to get checked, it creates a ripple effect that can save lives. The episode resonates with a message of hope, community, and the belief that everyone deserves access to vital healthcare services. We're not just talking stats; we're sharing real stories that make you feel the weight of this cause. So, grab a cup of coffee, kick back, and get ready to be inspired by the power of community action and the vital role that mobile health services play in bridging gaps in healthcare access. We promise, it’s a casual chat, but with a serious punchline about why every woman should prioritize her health. This isn’t just a podcast—it’s a call to action!

Takeaways:

• Mobile mammogram machines are game-changers, bringing vital services to underserved areas.

• Community connections are key; one woman’s call sparked a mammogram movement in Philadelphia.

• Access to healthcare isn't just about machines, it's about people spreading the word.

• True access means women empowering each other to prioritize their health and wellbeing.

mobile mammogram machine, community health, breast cancer awareness, mammogram access, women's health education, preventive healthcare, health equity, community outreach programs, cancer screening, importance of mammograms, cultural communication in healthcare, healthcare access, mobile health units, patient advocacy, community wellness, health disparities, multilingual health communication, breast cancer prevention, healthcare accessibility, local health initiatives

You’re looking at your screening compliance numbers again.

They’re not where you want them.

Maybe it’s a rural facility that closed last year. Maybe it’s a service area where women keep falling through the gap between “needs a mammogram” and “gets a mammogram.” You already know the gap exists. What you don’t have is a mobile mammography model for closing it that doesn’t require a capital project and an 18-month timeline.

Karen Anderson has one. It’s already running in Philadelphia.

Why Mobile Mammography Demand Already Exists in Your Community

Here’s what nobody tells administrators: the hesitation isn’t on the patient side.

Women are pulling into grocery store parking lots asking if it’s true they can get a free mammogram in fifteen minutes. A man carried a mammogram script around for months before a mobile unit parked near his neighborhood finally got him to act. Since 2021, this program has screened more than 3,000 women who weren’t getting screened before.

That’s not a marketing win. That’s proof the demand was there the whole time. It just didn’t have anywhere to go.

The Operator Behind the Model

Karen Anderson isn’t a Siemens executive reading from a script. She’s a radiologic technologist and the Scientific Marketing Manager and Key Opinion Leader Manager for North American Women’s Health at Siemens Healthineers, with 37 years in this field.

She once took over a breast center with a 3-to-6-month appointment backlog. Within a couple of months, working with her radiologists and department leadership, she got that backlog down to 3 days.

Then she went further. She helped raise $42 million to expand that center from 5 rooms to 12.

That’s not a career story. That’s an operator who understands capacity problems the same way you do.

What a Mobile Mammography Partnership Requires

Here’s where it gets specific, and this is the part worth understanding before you decide it’s not for your system.

It requires a healthcare provider partner. A radiologist committed to reading exams inside the 30-day window MQSA requires. And an internal champion, someone willing to own the logistics from the hospital side.

One radiologist in Philadelphia partnered with this exact mobile unit for three years first. He watched it find cancers in patients his own hospital wasn’t reaching. Then he went and secured his own grant funding to run a unit year-round.

That part of the story, how he made that case internally and what changed once he did, is in the full episode.

Where to Go From Here

Listen Now!

🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

And if your system is sitting on the same gap Philadelphia had, this link to Siemens Healthineers’ partnership page, where you can find out what getting a mobile mammography unit into your own community would actually require. Karen Anderson walks through the rest of that process in the episode.

Talk soon, Chaun

P.S. Forward this to the person in your system who owns community benefit reporting, or the one who’s been asking for a rural outreach solution for a year with no clear path to one. This is the path.

Subscribe now

I had just stepped off a mobile mammography unit parked outside a grocery store in Philadelphia when a woman came flying through the lot, slammed on her brakes, and rolled down her window.

“How long are you guys going to be here?” she asked me and another woman standing nearby.

“Two weeks,” I told her.

She rolled her window back up and took off. Five minutes later, two more women pulled in, got out of their cars, and walked straight up to the tent. “Is it true I can get a free mammogram in fifteen minutes?” one of them asked. When the answer was yes, both women went in, and both came out smiling ear to ear.

Later that day, I took an Uber to see a little more of the city. The driver asked why I was in Philadelphia, so I told her about the mammograms and the mobile unit. She got quiet, put in her earpiece, and called her mother. I couldn’t understand the language, but when she hung up she told me what she’d said, and it’s the reason I sat down with radiologic technologist Karen Anderson for this week’s episode. Karen Anderson’s full story is in this week’s episode on A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast,

That’s what access actually looks like. It isn’t a billboard. It isn’t a paid ad. It’s a conversation, passed from one person to the next.

Why Mobile Mammography Vans Exist in the First Place

Not every woman has health insurance. Rural hospitals are closing at a steady rate, and plenty of people don’t have reliable transportation to reach the hospitals that remain. Mobile mammography exists to close that gap directly, by bringing the equipment, the technologist, and the appointment to a parking lot in the community that needs it.

Karen Anderson has been a radiologic technologist for 37 years. She started in mammography in Dallas, went on to manage a breast center, and today is the Scientific Marketing Manager and Key Opinion Leader Manager for North American Women’s Health at Siemens Healthineers, where she still finds time to scan patients on Saturday mornings. Since 2021, the program she runs has screened more than 3,000 women, including 17 in a single week in Philadelphia alone.

How a 15-Minute Mobile Mammogram Actually Works

I’ve had mammograms since my twenties, and even I didn’t know they could run this fast. A single image sweep on Siemens’ newest equipment takes under five seconds, and a standard screening is four images total. Registration to walkout, fifteen minutes, is real.

But speed isn’t the part of this episode that stayed with me. It’s what happens in the minutes before a woman agrees to get on the van at all.

The Fear Most Women Don’t Say Out Loud

One woman refused to come near the unit the same day I was there. She’d had a mammogram before, and it hurt. Karen didn’t argue with her. She brought her inside and let her put her own hand under the compression paddle before doing anything else.

“Did you notice anything as that came down?” Karen asked her.

What that woman said next, and what she decided to do after saying it, is one of the moments from this episode I’m not going to spell out here. It’s one of two moments in this conversation that changed how I think about what “access” actually requires, and it’s a better story hearing Karen tell it than reading it secondhand.

There’s also the woman who told Karen she’d lost her health insurance and didn’t think she could afford to be screened at all. What Karen said back to her, in that exact moment, is the second one.

How Hospitals Decide Where the Van Goes

This isn’t random. Hospitals typically look at zip code data and breast cancer mortality rates to decide where the need is greatest, often in communities where women are least likely to come to the hospital on their own. As Karen put it, the community isn’t coming to the hospital, so the hospital comes to the community.

What It Takes to Bring a Mobile Mammography Unit to Your Community

If you’re a technologist or administrator thinking “we need one of these,” Karen was direct about the one thing that has to be in place first: a champion. Someone internally has to own the outreach relationship, including the part that doesn’t get talked about enough, federal regulations that require screening results to reach patients within 30 days.

From there, the request runs through Siemens directly, and some facilities eventually raise the funding to run their own unit full time, the way this Philadelphia hospital did.

Learn how to take the next step to Mobile Mammography for your healthcare system.

The Access Chain: How Mobile Mammography Builds Trust

Every story in this episode follows the same three-part pattern. I’ve started calling it the Access Chain: show up where people already are, build trust before you ask for anything, and follow through on results without fail. Miss any one of the three links, and the whole chain breaks.

Your Next Step

1. Find out whether your health system already partners with a mobile mammography program.

2. If it does, ask how you could get involved, either behind the scanner on outreach days or as the internal champion who keeps the follow-through part honest.

3. If it doesn’t yet, start the conversation this week. Someone has to raise their hand first.

Don’t Miss the Full Episode

Karen Anderson’s full story is in this week’s episode on A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast, including how she turned a 3-to-6-month appointment backlog into a 3-day wait, helped raise $42 million to fund a new breast center, and what she actually said to the woman who thought she couldn’t afford to be screened.

Listen Now:

🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

Talk soon, Chaun

P.S. If you know a radiologic technologist who’s never worked mobile mammography, forward this to her. Karen’s story is proof that access to care and a real career path can come from the exact same van.

Subscribe now

Let me be real with you, this episode is the kind that makes a Mammography and Radiologic Technologist stop and go "wait, what?" I sat down with Karen Anderson, Scientific Marketing Manager and Key Opinion Leader Manager for North American Women's Health at Siemens Healthineers. She's been a mammographer for 37 years and still scans on Saturdays. Karen walked me through how she turned a 3-to-6-month wait at her old breast center into a 3-day turnaround, how she raised $42 million to build a new one from the ground up, and how Siemens' mobile units are now bringing 15-minute screenings, 4.8-second image sweeps, and 50-degree wide-angle tomosynthesis straight into communities that need it most.

Sponsored by Siemens Healthineers

If you're a tech thinking about mammography, mobile imaging, or community health as your next move, this one's for you.

Bring a mobile unit to your community → Community Outreach Program link

In this episode:

• How Karen turned a 3-to-6-month mammogram backlog into a 3-day wait, then raised $42 million to expand access even further

• What actually happens during a 15-minute mobile mammogram, from registration to results

• Why Siemens' 50-degree wide-angle tomo and 4.8-second scan time matter for image quality and patient comfort

• How hospitals and health systems can partner with Siemens to bring a mobile mammography unit into their own community

• Real patient stories from the Philadelphia mobile unit, including a woman too afraid of radiation to get screened, and a man who showed up with a mammogram referral in hand

• Career advice for technologists considering mammography or mobile/community imaging as their next move

Guest: Karen Anderson, Scientific Marketing Manager and Key Opinion Leader Manager for North American Women's Health, Siemens Healthineers. Registered radiologic technologist and mammographer with 37 years of experience, former breast center director who raised $42 million to fund a new facility.

Resources mentioned:

• Learn more about Siemens Healthineers mobile mammography and how to request a unit: PennMedicine.org/MobileMammo

• MQSA 30-day results reporting standard (referenced in episode)

Follow A Couple of Rad Techs:

📸 Instagram:

💼 LinkedIn:

🎵 TikTok:

📧 Newsletter:

mobile mammography, mammogram screening, women's health, breast cancer awareness, community health outreach, free mammograms, Philadelphia health initiatives, breast imaging technology, Siemens Healthineers, healthcare access, mammography technologists, early detection breast cancer, mobile health units, patient education mammography, mammography partnerships, healthcare equity, women's health screenings, radiologic technologist career, mammogram process, mobile health programs

You’re sitting in your car after a 12-hour shift, scrolling, and you see it again — someone talking about becoming a nuclear medicine technologist. And that quiet question shows up one more time: could that be me? If you’ve been wondering how to get into nuclear medicine, whether it’s too late, or what the path actually looks like, this one is for you.

I recently asked one simple question on Instagram — where are the nuclear medicine technologists? — and over 81,000 people showed up. Thousands saved it. Thousands shared it. And the comments filled with the same two questions from radiologic technologists and students everywhere: “How do I get in?” and “Am I too late?”

So let’s answer both. Properly.

What Does a Nuclear Medicine Technologist Do?

Most people in medical imaging capture how the body looks. Nuclear medicine technologists capture how the body functions.

You prepare and administer radiopharmaceuticals — small amounts of radioactive material — and then image how organs actually work in real time. Cardiac perfusion. Thyroid function. Bone metabolism. You’re not just producing a picture; you’re producing physiology.

That’s what makes this modality different from every other corner of diagnostic imaging. And it’s why nuclear medicine attracts the technologist who loves the “why” behind the image.

How to Become a Nuclear Medicine Technologist: NMTCB vs ARRT(N)

There are two certification routes, and both are respected:

The NMTCB (CNMT) — the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification Board credential. Requires graduating from an accredited nuclear medicine technology program.

The ARRT(N) — the nuclear medicine credential through the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists. If you’re already ARRT-registered in another modality, this route will feel familiar, and there is a post-primary pathway designed specifically for working radiologic technologists.

Neither is “better.” Employers recognize both. What matters is completing an accredited nuclear medicine technology program and passing your board.

How Long Does It Take to Become a Nuclear Medicine Technologist?

Here’s the honest timeline:

Starting from zero: a 2 to 4 year accredited degree program (associate’s or bachelor’s) in nuclear medicine technology.

Already a registered radiologic technologist: certificate programs built for the post-primary pathway can get you there in as little as 12 months. You are not starting over. Your patient care skills, your radiation safety foundation, your clinical instincts — all of it transfers.

That second path is the one nobody explains. Most technologists assume a modality change means going back to square one. It doesn’t.

Nuclear Medicine Technologist Salary and Job Outlook

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for nuclear medicine technologists was $97,020 as of May 2024 — about $46 an hour. Employment is projected to grow about as fast as average through 2034, and it’s a smaller, more specialized field than general radiography, which means less competition on the way in and real leverage once you’re certified.

Salary varies by state, setting, and experience — outpatient centers and travel contracts often pay well above the median. Run the numbers for your own market before you decide.

Theranostics: Why Nuclear Medicine Is Growing

This is the part I need every radiologic technologist to hear: nuclear medicine is no longer just about finding disease. With theranostics — the pairing of diagnostic imaging with targeted radiopharmaceutical therapy — this modality is now treating disease, especially in oncology.

That means the nuclear medicine technologist of the next decade isn’t only a diagnostician. You’re part of the treatment team. Few careers in medical imaging are expanding their scope like this one.

My Nuclear Medicine Story

I went back to school for nuclear medicine myself, so this modality is personal for me. On my very first day of nuclear medicine training, my father had a massive heart attack. I spent the next 30 days in the hospital caring for him before he passed away.

That year taught me more than any classroom could — about imaging, about patients and families on the other side of the machine, and about how much this work matters. When I tell you this profession is bigger than “just taking pictures,” I’m not repeating a slogan. I lived it.

Your Next Step

If nuclear medicine has been on your mind, do these three things this week:

1. Look up JRCERT-accredited nuclear medicine technology programs near you (or the certificate route if you’re already registered).

2. Talk to a nuclear medicine technologist in your facility — ask how they got in.

3. Come tell me where you are in the process. I read every comment.

And if you want more conversations like this — real career paths, real timelines, real stories from inside medical imaging — follow A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Captivate FM, and turn on notifications so you don’t miss what’s coming next. New modality breakdowns are dropping every Monday.

Talk soon, Chaun

P.S. You know exactly one person who has been saying “one day I’ll switch modalities” for years. Forward this to that radiologic technologist today. The nuclear medicine path is shorter than they think — and someone once forwarded me the information that changed my career, too.

PAST Podcast Episodes:

How to Become a Nuclear Medicine Technologist: Schooling, Salary, and Career Guide

Subscribe now

After two decades in MRI, CT, and X-Ray (and visiting over 24 countries while married to another rad tech), I realized our schedule isn’t a limitation; it’s the building block to more freedom than most salaried workers ever get.

If you’re stuck thinking your career stole your summer, here’s how you can start using PTO and your rad tech schedule to design the life you actually want.

How To Use Your Rad Tech PTO and Schedule For a Better Life

1) Stop Believing the Myth That Your Schedule is a Curse

We’ve all seen 9-to-5 friends book their vacations six months out, while we scramble for leftovers after everyone picks the good days or holidays. There’s this myth that office jobs are “better for balance.” But, as Sean points out, most salaried Americans get ten days of vacation a year, total. As a rad tech working 3x12s, you have four days off—every single week—built into your schedule. That’s over 200 days off a year, before you even touch PTO.

2) Count (and Reframe) Your Days Off

Let’s do some basic math. You work 36 hours across three days. That leaves four consecutive days off every week. Start viewing those stretches as your foundation, not just gaps between shifts. These aren’t “filler” days—they are your travel budget, your family weekends, your catch-up-on-life days.

3) Strategically Stack PTO to Stretch Your Vacation

Instead of taking a full week off with scattered shifts (like an office worker), use three days PTO next to your regularly scheduled days off. Suddenly, you’ve turned a short break into a 10-day stretch—using just three PTO days. Meanwhile, your salary-based friends need five PTO days for a basic week off (and probably have to work overtime before or after to make up for it).

4) Use the Power of PRN and Travel Contracts

If you want even more flexibility, PRN (as-needed) or per diem work lets you pick up shifts when you want extra money—or skip them when you want time off. Travel contracts let you work in a new city for 13 weeks and treat it as both an adventure and a paycheck. These options are exploding for rad techs, and rates are some of the highest in allied health.

5) Stop Waiting for the “Right Time”

There will always be short staffing. Your PTO bank will always feel thin. The perfect moment never just arrives. The only way to take advantage is to start designing your vacations and life around the flexibility you actually have. You don’t need “more time” or “more PTO”—you need to see what you’re already holding.

6) Do This 15-Minute Challenge

Pull up your schedule for the next 90 days. Find every stretch of three or more consecutive days off (without using PTO). Write them down. Now, test out how you could turn those into 5-, 7-, or 10-day vacations by adding strategically placed PTO days. Don’t just stare at your PTO bank—look for patterns in your actual schedule. You might be sitting on dream trips, family weekends, and more recharging time than you realized.

7) Take the Career Pivot Assessment If You’re Stuck

If you’re not sure your current job—or even your arrangement—is allowing you to use these strategies, consider a short self-assessment. A three-minute check-in may reveal more options for flex scheduling or travel contracts than you knew.

Start Owning Your Schedule (and Your Life)

You aren’t overworked or stuck. Most professions would kill for our built-in flexibility. Reframe your days off, use PTO strategically, and give yourself permission to travel and rest—now, not “someday.”

If you’re a rad tech, you have more power than you realize. Don’t let another summer slip by. Open up your calendar, stack your PTO, and start designing your life—one stretch of days off at a time.

Talk soon,
Chaun

Tune in and listen: 🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

Subscribe now

How did talking about my own profession online turn into this.

If you’ve ever had a moment in your career as a radiologic technologist where you almost had to pinch yourself, I think you’ll feel this one.

Twenty plus years ago I walked into a radiologic technology program hoping for one thing. Stability. A way to help patients and pay my bills. That was the whole plan. I didn’t have a bigger vision. I just wanted a steady career.

I never pictured sitting across from a global leader in medical imaging, recording a conversation together. Not in my wildest imagination.

Have you ever sat in your own version of that moment? Not a hotel lobby in Philadelphia, maybe just a quiet second in the break room, where you thought, how did I end up here, in the middle of a career I almost don’t recognize anymore.

Can you remember clocking into the same department for the tenth year in a row, doing the work well, doing it right, and still wondering somewhere in the back of your mind if there’s a bigger version of this career you haven’t found yet.

Maybe you’ve sat across from someone who asked “so what’s next for you,” like staying in radiologic technology wasn’t a real enough answer. Like the only way forward was out.

I know that feeling. I lived inside that feeling for a long time.

I used to believe growth in this career meant eventually leaving healthcare behind. That if I wanted more, I’d have to walk away from the thing I trained for. The thing I was actually good at.

What happened instead was the opposite of leaving.

I went deeper. I leaned into what I already knew about medical imaging and started saying it out loud, in public, where anyone could see it. I answered questions in the comments when nobody was watching. I posted when ten people were listening. I celebrated this profession before anyone asked me to.

That’s the part nobody tells you. The door doesn’t open because you leave the field. It opens because you go deeper into it.

While I was in Philadelphia, I sat down with a global leader from one of the biggest names in medical imaging to record a conversation for A Couple of Rad Techs.

I’m not telling you this to talk about the podcast. I’m telling you because of who this conversation is actually for.

It’s for you if you’re a radiologic technologist who isn’t sure which modality could actually move your career forward, and you’re tired of guessing what advanced imaging technology really looks like in practice versus what it sounds like on paper.

It’s for you if someone in your own family has ever gone through this specific modality, because you may recognize more of this conversation than you expect. We talked about a community-driven initiative tied to that exact modality, one that has raised $42 million to date for the people it serves.

And it’s for you if you’ve ever thought about getting more involved in community health work, or you’re already in it and want to see what that looks like at a global level, inside one of the largest imaging companies in the world.

This isn’t only about new technology. It’s about what’s possible for your career, your community, and the people you love, told by someone who has stayed in this field for 20+ years and never left.

I don’t know what your version of the Philadelphia lobby moment will look like. Maybe it’s a conversation. Maybe it’s a credential you finally pursue. Maybe it’s just permission to stop waiting to feel ready.

But I wanted you to have this one, because I think more of us need to hear it.

Talk soon,
Chaun

Tune in and listen: 🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

P.S. If you know a radiologic technologist who’s been quietly wondering if they made the wrong choice, send them this. Not the techs looking for the exit. The ones who stayed, and just need someone to remind them why that mattered.

Subscribe now

And your body was still at work.

If you’re a radiologic technologist, you know exactly what that feels like. The hips that don’t want to uncurl. The shoulders that stayed tense all the way through dinner. The mind that couldn’t stop running the list of what still needed to get done.

I’ve been doing this for 24 years. And the reason I’m still here — still clinical, still building, still showing up — is not toughness.

It’s recovery.

This week on Wednesday Wellness, I’m taking you into my Mat pilates class and showing you exactly how I care for myself after a long week. What I do. How long. And why I consider this maintenance — not luxury.

Because your career is a long game. And your body is the equipment that runs it.

The full Wednesday Wellness drop is live on Instagram and TikTok right now.

Go watch it, save it, and share it with a technologists who needs a reminder that movement is necessary.

I’ll see you on the other side of that sauna door.

🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

Chaun

P.S. — Know a technologists/therapists who is running on empty right now? Forward this to them. Sometimes all someone needs is permission to slow down.

Subscribe now

If you have ever stood at the end of a long shift and quietly wondered how many more years you can sustain this pace — or if you are someone just entering this field and trying to get it right from the start — this one is worth slowing down for.

The Question That Stopped the Scroll

A 52-year-old man posted a question recently that a lot of radiologic technologists in this community already know the answer to; they just learned it the hard way.

He is starting radiology school in 2027. He wants to work well into his 70s. His question: Should I do X-ray, CT, ultrasound, or go straight to MRI?

The honest answer is not what most program directors will tell you. It is not what the default enrollment path assumes. And it is exactly the kind of information that changes the trajectory of a radiologic technologist medical imaging career before the damage is already done.

What 20 Years in the Field Actually Shows

I’ve worked in X-ray, CT, and MRI over 20+ years in this field. I’ve watched colleagues Colleagues in their 40s transitioning out of modalities because their bodies gave out first. Radiologic technologists in their 60s still working comfortably because they chose strategically early. The difference between those two outcomes is rarely talent or work ethic. It is almost always information.

HERE IS THE HONEST BREAKDOWN:

X-ray and CT carry the heaviest physical toll — constant patient transfers, portable machines, dead weight lifting, trauma pace. Strong, fit technologists in their 40s are already limping by end of shift. The physical demands of both modalities are significant enough that starting at 50 could leave a ten-year gap between when the body gives out and when retirement was supposed to arrive.

Ultrasound trades lifting for repetitive wrist and shoulder strain. Carpal tunnel and rotator cuff injuries are widespread among sonographers. With strict ergonomic discipline from day one it can work — without it, the timeline shortens fast.

MRI is the sweet spot for radiology job security and long-term sustainability. The table moves automatically. The pace is slower. The environment is controlled. Technologists who choose MRI consistently report it is far more sustainable long-term — and standalone MRI programs exist today, meaning the X-ray credential is not always required to get there.

Nuclear Medicine and Radiation Therapy round out the strongest long-game options — lower patient volume, minimal heavy lifting, more technical focus. The investment is a four-year degree, but the math holds: sixteen sustainable years beats eight years that end in physical breakdown.

Why Entering Radiology at 50 Is a Strategic Advantage — If You Plan Right

Entering this field at 50 with a 20-year horizon is not a disadvantage. It is actually a reason to be more strategic, not less. The radiology career opportunities available right now — alongside the shifts that AI in radiology and diagnostic imaging are driving across the workforce — mean that radiologic technologists who plan intentionally will outlast those who simply took the most available job.

That question deserves a real answer. And the answer almost never comes from the default enrollment path. It comes from someone who has been inside this profession long enough to know what the work actually costs the body — and what it does not have to cost at all. That is the conversation this newsletter exists to start.

Don’t Miss This Episode — Follow and Turn On Notifications

Follow the show and turn on notifications so this episode reaches you the moment it drops:

🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

This conversation is part of the Radiologic Tech Career Pivot Lab — a series built for radiologic technologists who are ready to see real options without guessing, starting over, or waiting on permission.

Until next time, Chaun

A Couple of Rad Techs — because the best radiology careers are built one intentional step at a time.

P.S. If you know someone who is about to choose a modality without thinking about what their body will need at 65 — send them this before they sign anything.

From the outside, that looks like the kind of reliability that gets rewarded. And sometimes it does. But if you have ever watched a cross-training opportunity go to someone else while you were busy being the person the department couldn’t afford to lose, this one is for you.

Why Radiologic Technologists Stay Stuck Waiting on Cross-Training

Across the radiologic technologist community, the same story surfaces again and again. This question came up in our community on Instagram and the response was immediate — radiologic technologists knew exactly what I was talking about. Because most of us have lived this version of the conversation:

I wanted to talk to you about cross-training into MRI.”

“Oh no, not right now.”

That response — or worse, no response at all — has quietly stalled more radiologic technologist career pivots than a failed exam ever could. Because at least a failed exam gives you something to work with. Silence just sends you back to the schedule.

The hard truth is that being dependable keeps departments running. It doesn’t automatically move careers forward. Showing up every time is not a strategy — it’s a contribution. And contributions, without direction, can quietly become a ceiling.

How Outdated Information Is Stalling Radiologic Technologist Career Pivots

A decade ago, waiting felt like the only option. MRI-only programs were limited. Clear pathways for working radiologic technologists trying to pivot into new modalities barely existed. The only route seemed to run directly through whoever controlled the schedule.

That world is gone.

Today there are schools, weekend certifications, and MRI pathways built specifically for radiologic technologists who want to grow without starting over or leaving healthcare entirely. The radiology career opportunities available right now — alongside the pressure that AI in radiology and diagnostic imaging shifts are creating across the workforce — mean that radiology job security is no longer guaranteed by seniority alone. Waiting on one employer to decide your future is a strategy with a shrinking return.

If forward motion feels blocked right now, it might not be capability. It might just be outdated information. And once you have the right information, the pivot that felt impossible starts to look like a very clear next step.

👉 This started as a real conversation on Instagram — see the original post here → Being the reliable technologist was killing my career

Don’t Miss This Episode — Follow and Turn On Notifications

Follow the show and turn on notifications so this episode reaches you the moment it drops:

🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

This conversation is part of the Radiologic Tech Career Pivot Lab — a series built for radiologic technologists who are ready to see real options without guessing, starting over, or waiting on permission.

Until next time, Chaun

A Couple of Rad Techs — because the best radiology careers are built one intentional step at a time.

P.S. Know a radiologic technologist who has been waiting on a manager to say yes to cross-training? Forward this to them today. The pathway they’ve been waiting on might already exist — they just haven’t found it yet.

You know exactly how your room runs. Every protocol, every position, every patient flow — dialed in. From the outside, that looks like mastery. And it is. But if you’ve ever ended a shift feeling less like you’re building something and more like you’re maintaining something, this one is for you.

Why Radiologic Technologists Talk Themselves Out of Career Growth

When I asked our community whether they had seriously considered advancing to a new modality or specialty in the last year — and then talked themselves out of it — the response was overwhelming. You are not alone in this. The reasons were familiar: seniority, scheduling, family, uncertainty. All reasonable. All real. And for many radiologic technologists, all quietly becoming permanent.

That’s the trap. And it’s one I almost didn’t escape myself. I’ve watched talented radiologic technologists and medical imaging professionals — people with real options in diagnostic imaging — stay put, not because nothing was available, but because nobody ever showed them what imaging job security actually looks like when you move toward it instead of away from it.

How One Failed MRI Exam Almost Ended My Career Pivot

Here’s what I want you to know about me: I sat at a crossroads that looked a lot like yours.

After failing my MRI ARRT exam twice — including one attempt where I let a “Session Expired” screen become my exit strategy — I had to stand in front of coworkers and explain why I still hadn’t moved forward. The embarrassment was real. The self-doubt was louder. The comfortable role that asked nothing more of me was right there, waiting.

What changed everything wasn’t a dramatic breakthrough. It was a $100 weekend physics course and a mailed check — a deliberate, small investment in myself at the exact moment I most wanted to quit. The third attempt, I passed.

That experience is the entire reason this conversation exists. Because the radiology career opportunities available to us right now — amid AI in radiology reshaping diagnostic imaging faster than most of us anticipated — demand that we stop treating past difficulty as a verdict.

What the Imaging Technology Landscape Isn’t Telling You

I didn’t fail because I wasn’t capable. I failed because I didn’t understand the system — and once I did, everything changed.

The terms and conditions screen had a time limit nobody told me about. A prayer, a pause, and a timeout later — I was sent to the proctor before answering a single question. I went to the elevator and cried. I didn’t have the strength to walk to my car.

The second attempt, I sat through the whole thing. Failed by a few points.

And then a radiologic technologist who heard what happened called me. Told me about a weekend MRI crash course — Saturday and Sunday, $100. No Zelle, no Cash App. I mailed a check the same day. That course changed everything.

This is not a story about hustle. It is a story about exposure to the right information at the right time. If you have tried to pivot in your medical imaging career and hit a wall — a failed exam, a missed opportunity, a moment of embarrassment heavy enough to make you reconsider — it does not automatically mean you are not meant to grow. It might mean you are missing the right information, the right support, or the right strategy. And with AI in radiology accelerating the shift in how diagnostic imaging departments operate, the cost of staying comfortable is rising.

That moment didn’t end my career pivot. It unlocked more options than I even knew existed. And that is exactly what this newsletter and this podcast is here to do for you.

If someone in your life is doing the same thing — sitting in a modality they’ve outgrown, waiting for a sign — send them this. One article, one piece of the right information, is sometimes all it takes.

Follow the show and turn on notifications so this episode reaches you the moment it drops:

👉 Read the full carousel that started this conversation here →

When I finally decided to pivot to MRI, the universe tested me—hard.

Follow the show and turn on notifications so this episode reaches you the moment it drops:

🎧 Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts 📷 Youtube

This conversation is part of the Radiologic Tech Career Pivot Lab — a series built for radiologic technologists who are ready to see real options without guessing, starting over, or waiting on permission.

Until next time, Chaun

P.S: If you know a radiologic technologist and medical imaging professional who passed their ARRT boards but still hasn’t taken the next step — someone sitting in the same room they’ve been in for years, waiting for a reason to move — send them this. That is exactly who this was written for.

Let me ask you something. When you got into imaging, how many doors did somebody show you?

If your answer is three — management, travel, or keep scanning — you were working from the same incomplete menu most of us were handed. And that menu has been passed down from director to tech to student for decades.

This episode is about what's been sitting in the back of the kitchen the whole time.

In this episode:

• Why the career options most radiologic technologists know are not a reflection of what actually exists — they're a reflection of what the person giving advice was shown

• Why hospitals were never designed to be your career development center — and what that means for how you plan your next move

• The full expanded menu: application specialists, clinical education roles, PACS administration, imaging informatics, healthcare sales, leadership tracks that don't require managing people, and travel and per diem strategy done right

• Why feeling stuck is not a character flaw — it's a curriculum gap

• How to start investigating roles inside your own institution right now, before you make any big moves

Take the free Career Pivot Assessment → here 7 questions. 3 minutes. It shows you exactly where you are and what your next move could look like.

Follow A Couple of Rad Techs so you never miss an episode:

📧 Links → www.linktree.com/acoupleofradtechs

You already know what it feels like.

You walk into your 12-hour shift. You do the job. You do it well — probably better than most. And then somewhere around hour nine, a thought slips in that you don’t tell anybody about.

Is this all there is?

That thought is not weakness. That thought is information. It is telling you something that your body has known for a while — that you are not burned out from doing too much. You are burned out from feeling like you have nothing left to grow into.

I have been there. And I want to tell you what I found on the other side of it.

Burnout doesn’t just come from doing too much. It comes from feeling like you have nothing left to grow into.

— Chaundria Singleton

Share Radiology & Beyond Career Hub

THE MOMENT EVERYTHING SHIFTED

What I actually discovered

You probably joined this profession the same way I did — without anyone laying out all the doors. Nobody sat you down and said: in medical imaging, you can cross-train into MRI, CT, mammography, bone density or interventional radiology. You can teach. You can do research. You can go into leadership. You can speak. You can advocate for the profession at the legislative level.

I didn’t know any of that. And not knowing — while being very good at the job in front of me — is exactly how the drift happens.

Burnout in our field doesn’t always look like falling apart. Sometimes it looks like silence. A technologist who has stopped speaking up because what’s the point. Who sits in her car after a 12-hour shift and stares at the steering wheel — not because she’s weak but because she is so tired of growing in a space that isn’t growing with her.

That was me. For longer than I want to admit.

What changed was not a new job or a new credential. What changed was community. Specifically — it was reconnecting with the ASRT, and what I found when I finally went past the CEU tracking tab and looked at everything else.

Three things the ASRT gave me that had nothing to do with credit hours

1. A place to see what was possible. Events. Conferences. Volunteer pathways. Leadership development. I had been a member and never touched any of it. When I finally looked, it was like someone turned on the lights in a room I didn’t know existed.

2. A community of people living the same questions I was. Reading the community threads changed something in me. Other technologists were asking the same things I had been asking in my head alone. Just seeing that shifted the isolation.

3. The leadership development program. I found out about it from a guest on my podcast — not from any job I’ve ever worked. Not one manager in 22 years sent me to leadership training. This program exists. It is open to you. And I am applying the moment I qualify.

Here is your one move

This week — not next month, not when things slow down — go to asrt.org and click on one tab you have never clicked before. Not the CEU tab. One of the other ones. Events. Leadership. Volunteer. Scholarships.

You are not burned out because you are done. You are burned out because you have been disconnected.

And connection is the antidote.

Before you close this —

When you think about your career right now, which one is closer to the truth: you’re waiting for an opportunity to appear — or you’re waiting for permission to take one?

Hit reply and tell me. I read every one.

— Chaun

Radiologic technologist · Career strategist · 20+ years in imaging

A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast | Mat-Rice Media

P.S. If you know a radiologic technologist who’s been quiet lately — not complaining, just quiet — forward this to her. That silence is almost always the sign. She needs to hear this more than she’ll say.

If you’ve ever felt your stomach drop when someone mentions AI in your department, this episode is for you.

Chaun sits down with Jordan Hermiller, MHA, RT(R)(QM), CPHQ — a radiologic technologist and Technical Manager at Agfa Radiology Solutions — to cut through the noise around AI in radiography. Jordan has been a working rad tech, a radiology manager, a university instructor, and a published researcher. Now he works at the intersection of clinical practice and real-world AI implementation. He gets both sides.

In this episode:

• Why AI feels so dominant in radiology right now — and what’s actually driving it

• The difference between real AI and rebranded automation — and how to tell them apart

• What “autonomous x-ray” actually means in a real clinical environment

• How workforce shortages and AI intersect — and what that means for your job

• New roles opening up for radiologic technologists as AI becomes standard

• When to trust an AI recommendation — and when to push back

This episode is brought to you in paid partnership with Agfa Radiology Solutions.

Connect with Jordan Hermiller: LinkedIn

Learn more about Agfa Radiology Solutions: Website Link

AI (CE) Webinar: https://agfaradiologysolutions.com/campaigns/https-agfaradiologysolutions-com-ai_impact_in_radiography/

RadX Case Competition: https://agfaradiologysolutions.com/campaigns/radx-radiology-administration-challenge/

Agfa Website: https://agfaradiologysolutions.com/

Links referenced in this episode:

1. ahra.org

2. asrt.org

3. clevelandclinic.org

This episode was created in paid partnership with Agfa Radiology Solutions. All opinions expressed by Chaundria Singleton are her own.

Keywords: AI in radiology, radiologic technologists and AI, autonomous X-ray technology, AI job impact in radiology, future of radiology jobs, AI implementation in imaging, radiology workforce shortage, AI and patient care, technology in radiology, Agfa Radiology Solutions, AI education for technologists, radiology imaging advancements, deep learning in healthcare, AI misconceptions in radiology, quality assurance in radiography, challenges of AI in radiology, AI and patient outcomes, continuing education for radiology techs, radiology automation, AI training data and accuracy.

Let me tell you the thing nobody is saying out loud in your radiology department right now.

Most radiologic technologists think the biggest threat from artificial intelligence in medical imaging is that it will take their job.

That’s not the real threat.

The real threat is being the last person in the room to understand it.

Because here’s what’s actually happening in imaging departments across the country right now — AI in radiology isn’t replacing the radiologic technologist. It’s replacing the radiologic technologist who never learned how to work alongside it. The one who waited to be told what to do instead of getting ahead of it. The one who assumed someone else would figure it out for them.

And I say that with love. Because I was almost that person too.

The Radiology Workforce Is Changing — Here’s What the Data Says

Last week I asked my medical imaging community something that I think a lot of us have been thinking but not saying out loud:

“If your radiology department told you tomorrow they were rolling out AI — would you feel excited or would your stomach drop?”

Over 3,400 people saw it. 123 radiologic technologists and medical imaging professionals voted. 78% said excited.

But I want to talk to that 21% for a second.

If your stomach dropped — that feeling is information. It’s telling you that somewhere deep down you know there’s a gap between where you are right now and where the radiology field is going. And the good news? That gap is closeable. Right now. Without going back to school. Without a computer science degree. Without starting over.

I know because I went and found the person who can tell you exactly how.

Meet the Radiologic Technologist Who Now Leads AI Implementation in North America

Jordan Hermiller, MHA, RT(R)(QM), CPHQ is a radiologic technologist who became the Technical Manager for North America at Agfa Radiology Solutions — one of the leading companies deploying AI in radiology departments across the country.

He didn’t start behind a desk. He started exactly where you are. On the floor. Running fluoro. Positioning patients. Then he became a radiology manager, then a university instructor, then a published researcher — and now he works at the exact intersection of clinical practice and real-world artificial intelligence implementation in medical imaging.

When Jordan talks about AI in your department, he knows what it’s like to be you.

I asked him the questions radiologic technologists have been afraid to ask out loud. And he didn’t give me the polished vendor version. He gave me the honest one.

Here’s one thing he said that stopped me cold:

There is a difference between real AI and something that’s just been rebranded to sound cutting edge — and most radiologic technologists don’t know how to tell them apart yet.

That right there? That’s your power move. Because the radiologic technologist who walks into an in-service and knows the right questions to ask the vendor? That person becomes who radiology leadership calls when decisions are being made. That radiologic technologist doesn’t get replaced. That radiologic technologist gets promoted.

What AI in Radiology Actually Means for Your Job Security

Here is what this episode is going to answer for you directly:

What is autonomous x-ray technology — and is it actually putting radiologic technologists out of work? Because it is not what you are picturing. Jordan breaks down exactly what it looks like in a real clinical environment step by step.

How is the radiology workforce shortage connected to AI deployment — and what does that actually mean for your job security as a radiologic technologist? This is where I pushed hard. Because “empowering radiologic technologists” can sometimes be code for “we don’t need to hire as many people.” I asked the uncomfortable question. He answered it honestly.

What new radiology career opportunities are opening up for radiologic technologists right now — and can a radiologic technologist on a full schedule actually access them without starting over? The answer is yes. And Jordan tells you exactly where to start.

When should a radiologic technologist trust an AI recommendation — and when should they push back and say something isn’t right? This is the most practical question in the whole episode and his answer is one you need to hear.

And the big one. The one that lives under all of it:

Is the fear that AI is going to replace radiologic technologists actually valid?

His answer surprised me. I think it’s going to surprise you too.

New Episode of A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast — Live Thursday March 12 at 8AM Eastern

This is the AI in radiology conversation I wish I’d had years ago. If you work in medical imaging, if you are a radiologic technologist wondering about your future, if you are a radiology student trying to figure out what field you are walking into — this episode is for you.

👉Full podcast link here

Set your alarm. Clear your commute. This one is worth your full attention.

This episode was created in paid partnership with Agfa Radiology Solutions. All opinions are my own — you already know I don’t let anybody buy my voice.

See you Thursday, Chaun

One more thing before you go —

If you are not already following A Couple of Rad Techs on your favorite podcast platform, go do that right now. Hit follow AND turn on notifications so you get an alert the moment this episode drops Thursday at 8AM Eastern. You do not want to find out about this one two weeks late.

👉 [Spotify link] 👉 [Apple Podcasts link] 👉 [Captivate FM link]

P.S. — Forward this to one radiologic technologist who has been quietly worried about their career. The medical imaging professionals who thrive in the next ten years won’t be the ones who ignored artificial intelligence in radiology. They’ll be the ones who understood it better than the administrators who deployed it. That radiologic technologist can be you. And this episode is the starting point.

Subscribe now

In this episode, we discuss:

1. The Launchpad Effect: Why medical imaging is a gateway to the entire medical world, not just a clinical job.

2. The "Roommate Factor": How this career provides the financial foundation for independence and a lifestyle you love.

3. Endless Modalities: A breakdown of paths from MRI and Mammography to Radiation Safety and Forensics.

4. Beyond the 9-to-5: The truth about schedules, travel work, and avoiding the "Sunday scaries."

Resources Mentioned:

1. A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast: Dive into past episodes about informatics and specialized modalities.

2. Career Questions? Drop your thoughts in the comments or reach out for a roadmap on how to start your own pivot.

Radiologic Technologist Career, Rad Tech Salary, Radiology School Tips, Medical Imaging Pivot, ASRT Leadership, MRI and CT Modalities, Informatics in Radiology, Healthcare Career Freedom.

Most radiology/medical imaging technologists and radiation therapists aren’t burning out because they’re weak.

*This is a paid collaboration with ASRT.

They’re burning out because they’re trying to carry impossible problems… alone.

• You clear the list.

• You take “just one more” add-on.

• You skip breaks because “patients are waiting.”

• You fix what everyone else drops.

You’re the reason the department runs.

And the quiet cost?

You start to feel like a replaceable warm body at the console instead of a trained professional with options, leverage, and a future.

From the ASRT collaboration video on burnout:

“Burnout grows fastest in isolation. Infrastructure reduces friction. Isolation increases exhaustion.”

You feel that.

When you’re disconnected, every problem feels personal.
When you’re connected, you see the pattern — and you finally see it isn’t just you.

This newsletter, this ASRT collab, and the full episode on A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast were all created for one purpose:

To get you out of isolation and plugged into real support, real tools, and real career options through ASRT member resources.

Because if nothing about your support structure changes in 2026…
nothing about your experience of this job will either.

How Burnout and Career Drift Quietly Take Over Techs’ Lives

In the ASRT videos, we talked about two quiet forces that affect rad techs more than anyone admits:

• Burnout – emotional and physical exhaustion that grows in isolation

• Career drift – that slow, sneaky slide from the career you meant to build into a job you’re just surviving

From the career drift video:

You’re like a boat on the beach. You relax “just for a minute”…
and the tide pulls you out further than you ever planned to go.
Suddenly you’re out there with no paddle — professionally isolated, low on information, low on options.

▶️ Watch the ASRT career drift video for rad techs

For radiology/medical imaging technologists and radiation therapists, that looks like:

• You stop going to in person CE conferences because you’re “too tired.”

• You stop exploring modalities because “we’re short-staffed anyway.”

• You stop looking at ASRT resources because “I’ll do it when things slow down.”

Then one day you look up:

• You’re exhausted.

• You feel stuck.

• You’re not sure how to pivot, grow, or even stay without burning out.

That’s not a personal failure.
That’s career drift.

And the antidote is not “toughing it out.”

The antidote is connecting to real infrastructure:

• Education

• Community

• Career pathways

• Mental health & burnout support

• Professional advocacy

Which is exactly what ASRT has already built for you.

The Difference Between Doing This Alone vs. Doing This With Infrastructure

Here’s the hard truth:

You can be the strongest, kindest, hardest-working tech in the department…
and still have a miserable, stuck career if you’re isolated.

When you stay disconnected:

• You think you’re the only one drowning.

• You think your frustration is “just you not coping well.”

• You think your only options are: “stay and suffer” or “quit the field.”

When you plug into ASRT member resources, everything changes:

• You see your experience is part of a national pattern, not a personal flaw.

• You get language, tools, and education to name what’s happening.

• You discover new roles, modalities, and pathways you didn’t know existed.

• You stop drifting and start making informed moves.

The system is not going to come rescue you.
But you don’t have to rescue yourself alone.

ASRT exists precisely so you don’t have to do this in the dark.

Where To Go Next (So 2026 Doesn’t Look Like 2025)

If you watched the ASRT collaboration videos and thought:

• “That’s me.”

• “I’m so tired.”

• “I feel like I’ve drifted from the career I wanted.”

Here are your concrete next steps.

1. Listen to the Full Conversation

The short videos only scratched the surface.

We went much deeper on burnout, isolation, and career drift in the full episode on:

🎙 A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast
Search for the episode featuring the ASRT collaboration (or follow the show if you haven’t yet).

In that episode, we talk about:

• How burnout in techs really shows up (beyond “just tired”)

• Why feeling professionally invisible is so common in imaging

• How career drift happens even when you’re “doing everything right”

• How connection and community literally change your options

Use that episode as your starting point for clarity.
Then pair it with the tools ASRT already offers you.

2. Log In to Your ASRT Account (Or Join If You Haven’t Yet)

If you’re already an ASRT member and haven’t logged in for a while:

• Take 10 minutes this week to sign in.

• Don’t just click around randomly — go in with intention.

Look for:

• Member resources on burnout, resilience, and mental health

• Career development and pathway tools

• CE courses to explore new modalities or deepen your current one

• Community spaces or forums where techs are talking about the same things you’re feeling

If you’re not a member yet:

• This is exactly what ASRT membership is built for —
  not just CE credits, but career protection and evolution.

3. Use ASRT To Fight Burnout with Infrastructure, Not Willpower

From the burnout video:

“When you’re disconnected, every problem feels personal.
When you’re connected, patterns become visible and solutions follow.”

ASRT is where you start seeing the patterns:

• Staffing & volume issues are national

• Burnout in techs is widespread and studied

• Advocacy is happening on your behalf — and you can be part of it

• There are resources specifically designed for what you’re going through

Instead of:

• Googling random coping tips at 2 a.m.

• Venting in break rooms and going back to the same chaos

You can:

• Take structured courses

• Learn evidence-based strategies

• Connect with people who get it

• Explore roles you’ve never considered

That’s what it means to stop drifting and start directing.

4. Use ASRT to Reverse Career Drift

From the career drift video:

“You didn’t opt out on purpose — you drifted.
Drifting feels safe until it isn’t…
because now you’re out there with no paddle.
Professionally isolated. You lose information. You lose options.”

ASRT gives you back:

• Information – about where the field is going, what’s changing, what’s possible

• Options – new modalities, leadership tracks, education paths, advocacy roles

• Community – people who can show you what their next step looked like

If you’ve felt:

• Stuck in the same role with no upward movement

• Unsure how to switch modalities or settings

• Curious about teaching, leadership, management, or advanced practice

Use ASRT’s member resources as your career map, not just a CE library.

This Is Your Fork in the Road

You’ve probably had this thought:

“I’ll just get through this year and figure it out later.”

That’s how drift happens.

Taken together, here’s how your 2026 can shift if you plug into ASRT and the deeper conversation on the podcast:

If You Stay Isolated If You Plug Into ASRT & Community Problems feel personal Problems look like patterns You feel stuck in one job You see multiple paths for your career Burnout feels like weakness Burnout makes sense — and has tools & language You wait for your workplace to change You start changing your options and your trajectory

You do not have to white-knuckle your way through another year hoping things magically get better.

You can:

1. Listen to the full episode on
   🎧 A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast (ASRT collaboration episode)

2. Log in to your ASRT member resources

3. Start using what’s already there for you: burnout support, education, career tools, and community

Final Thought

You are not “just a tech.”

You are:

• The first line of imaging care

• The hands, eyes, and judgment behind every scan

• The person patients remember long after they forget the room number

You deserve infrastructure that supports that reality.

ASRT has built it.
A Couple of Rad Techs is talking about it.

Your move is simple:

• Open the podcast.

• Log into ASRT.

• Take one small, intentional step this week.

That’s how drift stops.
That’s how something finally changes in 2026.

A wake-up call for radiologic technologists and medical imaging professionals who feel stuck, burned out, or invisible in their careers.

Here's why:

You can be excellent at your job and still quietly disappear from your profession.

In this solo episode of A Couple of Rad Techs, we’re talking directly to radiologic technologists and medical imaging professionals who are skilled, dependable, and tired—but starting to feel stuck, overlooked, or disconnected.

This is not a motivational episode.

It’s a career reality check.

Being good at your job used to be enough. In today’s medical imaging landscape, it isn’t.

Technology is accelerating. Scope pressure is real. Decisions about radiology and radiation therapy are being made every day—and many working technologists are not in the room when they happen.

In this episode, we cover:

1. The silent career mistake many technologists make without realizing it

2. Why professional isolation feels safe at first—and costly later

3. What technologists actually lose when they disengage from the profession

4. The difference between being employed and being connected

5. Why burnout grows faster in isolation

6. What ASRT and professional societies really provide beyond CEUs

7. Why visibility—not just competence—is becoming the dividing line

This conversation is for medical imaging technologists who:

1. Are good at what they do

2. Care about the profession

3. Feel tired, skeptical, or burned out

4. Haven’t fully stepped away—but haven’t fully stepped in either

You don’t need to do everything.

You do need to stop standing on the sidelines of your own profession.

Key Takeaways

1. Competence alone no longer protects your career

2. Professional isolation is still a decision—even when it feels passive

3. You can’t negotiate, pivot, or prepare for changes you don’t know about

4. Connection creates visibility, leverage, and options

5. Professional societies function as career infrastructure—not extras

If this episode hit, don’t brush it off.

Take one step that reconnects you to the profession.

Visit asrt.org

Review the salary data

Reconnect with your state society

You don’t need to do everything.

You just need to stop being invisible.

About the Show

A Couple of Rad Techs is a podcast for radiologic technologists, MRI techs, CT techs, radiation therapists, and medical imaging professionals who want more clarity, confidence, and longevity in their careers—without leaving the field.

Hosted by a 20+ year medical imaging professional, this show blends real experience, honest conversations, and practical insight from inside the profession.

radiologic technologist

medical imaging careers

radiology burnout

ASRT

professional societies

radiology career growth

medical imaging jobs

radiation therapy careers

healthcare professional development

Ever found yourself wondering if you're too old to hit the books again? Well, our chat today dives into the heart of that conundrum. Picture this: you’re 37, juggling a toddler and a full-time job, and you’re eyeing a shiny new path in MRI technology. Sounds like a wild ride, right? But hold on, because age is just a number, my friend! With over 20 years in the radiologic tech game, I've got the scoop: your experience, your wisdom, and your fierce determination might just make you the perfect candidate for this challenge. Forget what the naysayers say! The real question is—are you ready to roll up your sleeves and dive into something that’ll demand your time and energy for a couple of intense years? Spoiler alert: if you’ve got a plan, you can totally do this! And don’t forget to picture yourself six months in, because it’s gonna be a ride, but a totally achievable one if you prep right. So, let’s get to it!

Takeaways:

• You might be wondering if being 37 and going back to school is crazy, but it's totally doable!

• Experience and wisdom can work in your favor when starting a new career path, trust me on this.

• Balancing school, work, and family is tough, but having a solid support system makes it easier.

• Don't let age deter you from pursuing your dreams; focus on what your reality looks like instead.

MRI school, going back to school at 37, balancing work and school, parenting while studying, healthcare career change, radiologic technology, full-time school challenges, managing time as a parent, support systems for students, age and education, online MRI programs, clinical hours in healthcare, juggling family and education, adult education challenges, preparing for MRI school, work-life balance in healthcare, tips for returning to school, healthcare burnout, life after 30 in education, making time for study.