Better employment opportunities, increased chances of career advancement and higher salary pays await radiographers with x-ray technician certifications given by the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists or ARRT. The ARRT is the credentialing organization that ensures continuous delivery of high quality patient care by giving recognition to qualified radiographers to practice as professional medical radiologic technologists. Completing an associate degree or a baccalaureate degree from an accredited x-ray technician school is not enough to give one radiographer a cutting edge over the increasing number of x-ray tech students. Obtaining an x-ray technician certification is essential as it is required by most health care institutions for employment. Moreover, 35 out of 40 states that require licenses from radiologic technologists include a certificate from the AART as one of their prerequisites. Apparently, an x-ray technician certification is imperative to increase the chances of succeeding in this field.
Obtaining an x-ray technician certification is a one-time process, meaning, once an x-ray technician is certified, there is no need for renewal to retain the certificate unless he has not been compliant with the Continuing Education requirements for 5 years. Re-qualification and re-examination are required if more than 5 years has elapsed. An x-ray tech is certified after he meets the 3 basic requirements of ARRT which include components education preparation, ethics standards and certification examination.
A candidate for certification should be a person with good moral character, who has not engaged in any activity or incident that violates the Rules of Ethics of ARRT. The x-ray technician should also agree to conform to the ARRT Standards of Ethics and ARRT Rules and Regulations. The education standards set by ARRT must be met for a radiographer to obtain eligibility for an x-ray technician certification. The x-ray tech should have successfully completed an x-ray technician program accredited by the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology or JRCERT. The candidate should demonstrate competence in didactic coursework and in clinical procedures and activities set by the ARRT. A certain number of general patient care activities and radiologic procedures are required. Once the first two requirements are met, the candidate is eligible to sit for a certification examination that mainly assesses the x-ray technician’s knowledge and cognitive skills in medical radiologic technology. Content areas of examination include radiation protection, equipment operation and quality control, patient care and education, radiographic procedures and image production and evaluation. After the candidate successfully passes the examination, he is recognized as a certified radiologic technologist. Noteworthy to mention, certification does not automatically make a certified x-ray tech an R.T. as one is not authorized to use the title without making an annual registration.
During the initial certification, the certified radiologic technologist is registered until the end of his birth month, except in cases where the birth date occurs two months or less after the certificate has been given. In these cases, the registration is valid until his birth month of the following year. Registration is renewed annually by attaining 24 units of Continuing Education credits accredited by the ARRT. Registered and experienced x-ray technologists can advance their careers and choose a field of concentration by obtaining additional educational units and certifications. The applicants should demonstrate competence in performing technical and clinical skills and mastery in cognitive knowledge before they are certified in a certain field of radiologic technology.
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