News | Radiology Business | September 24, 2015

Despite vacancy increases in six of eight specialties, researchers preach caution

ASRT, staffing survey, 2015, medical imaging, vacancy rates, slight increase

September 24, 2015 — After marking a steady decline since 2005, the vacancy rate for radiographers increased slightly to 3.4 percent in 2015, according to the latest American Society of Radiologic Technologists (ASRT) Radiologic Sciences Workplace and Staffing Survey.

The vacancy rate represents the number of positions that are open and actively being recruited. This year’s radiographer vacancy rate is an increase from the 1.7 percent rate reported in the 2013 staffing survey. Overall, vacancy rates in six of the eight tracked medical imaging disciplines and specialty areas increased since 2013, with two areas showing slight decreases:

  • Computed tomography (CT) technologists increased from 2.7 percent to 4.5 percent;
  • Sonographers increased from 2.6 percent to 5.1 percent;
  • Magnetic resonance (MR) technologists increased from 3 percent to 4.2 percent;
  • Mammographers increased from 1.4 percent to 2.6 percent;
  • Nuclear medicine technologists increased from 1.3 percent to 2.8 percent;
  • Cardiovascular-interventional technologists decreased from 5.2 percent to 4.1 percent; and
  • Bone densitometry technologists decreased from 1.8 percent to 1 percent.

“People should be very cautious when interpreting this data. A slight increase in vacancy rates may cause optimism among radiologic technologists in a difficult job market; however, this increase is a single data point and doesn’t indicate a statistically significant trend,” said ASRT Chief Academic Officer Myke Kudlas, M.Ed., R.T.(R)(QM), CIIP.

In addition to vacancy rates, the report highlights information about workforce turnover and demographics. For example, the average number of full-time radiographers per medical imaging facility declined in 2015 to 8.4, down from 9.2 in 2013. Also, the average number of full-time CT, sonography, mammography, nuclear medicine, cardiovascular-interventional and bone densitometry technologists per facility fell slightly. However, the number of full-time MR technologists per facility rose from 3.4 in 2013 to 4.2 in 2015.   

The survey data also highlights various work volume trends. For instance, the study revealed the average radiography department has 3.4 machines, sees 13,324 patients per year and performs 26,872 images.

ASRT e-mailed the survey in April 2015 to 15,000 radiology department managers across the United States. At the close of the survey on May 31, 2015, 1,123 respondents had submitted completed questionnaires.

For more information: www.asrt.org


Related Content

News | Computed Tomography (CT)

July 01, 2025 — NANO-X Imaging Ltd. recently announced a clinical and educational collaboration with Keiser University ...

Time July 03, 2025
arrow
News | Ultrasound Imaging

June 26, 2025 — FUJIFILM VisualSonics Inc., a provider of ultra-high frequency ultrasound and photoacoustic imaging ...

Time June 27, 2025
arrow
News | Imaging Software Development

June 12, 2025 — GE HealthCare has announced the combination of GE HealthCare’s proprietary features and algorithms with ...

Time June 12, 2025
arrow
News | Radiology Business

The issue of sustainability in healthcare has gained increasing focus over the past several years. During a 2022 plenary ...

Time May 06, 2025
arrow
News | Radiology Imaging

Nov. 13, 2024 — Agfa Radiology Solutions will feature live demonstrations of state-of-the-art digital X-ray rooms ...

Time November 14, 2024
arrow
News | Computed Tomography (CT)

SPONSORED CONTENT — Fujifilm’s latest CT technology brings exceptional image quality to a compact and user- and patient ...

Time August 06, 2024
arrow
News | Radiology Business

July 31, 2024 — The American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) announced the three Registered Technologists (R ...

Time July 31, 2024
arrow
Feature | Computed Tomography (CT) | By Melinda Taschetta-Millane

In the ever-evolving landscape of medical imaging, computed tomography (CT) stands out as a cornerstone technology ...

Time July 30, 2024
arrow
Videos | Radiology Business

Find actionable insights to achieve sustainability and savings in radiology in this newest of ITN’s “One on One” video ...

Time July 30, 2024
arrow
News | Breast Imaging

July 29, 2024 — iCAD, Inc., a global leader in clinically proven AI-powered cancer detection solutions, announced a ...

Time July 29, 2024
arrow
Subscribe Now