Dr. Donna Lee Wright and Jeffrey Killion recently received one of four national progr

Dr. Donna Lee Wright and Jeffrey Killion of the MSU Radiologic Sciences Department in the College of Health Sciences and Human Services recently received one of four national program development grants from the American Society of Radiologic Technologists for development of a Radiologist Assistant (RA) Program. Other programs receiving the grant are all affiliated with major medical centers and located in New Jersey, North Carolina, and California. MSU will collaborate with the three other programs to establish the national curriculum model for RA Programs. The one-year grant will help support course development, introduction of the program concept, and initial recruitment for the new program. The purpose of the post-baccalaureate program is to prepare graduate RAs to perform skills similar to those described by the ASRT and ACR. To this end, the program will accept only registered technologists with a minimum of five years of professional experience. The RA is a newly emerging allied health care professional providing a recognized advanced clinical role for experienced radiologic technologists. An RA enhances patient care by extending the capacity of the radiologist in the diagnostic imaging environment. The RA performs patient assessment, patient management, fluoroscopy, and other radiology procedures. This new health care professional will also make initial observations of diagnostic images, with official interpretations and final written reports being provided by supervising radiologists (as defined by the American College of Radiology (ACR) Standard for Communication: Diagnostic Radiology). An RA Program fits well at MSU. For thirty years, the department has been involved in advanced radiologic sciences education including coordination of numerous off-campus clinical experiences supported by a large number (10) of full-time qualified faculty members within the discipline. In a state with a population of over 21 million, the department has the largest entry-level Associate degree program and the only Bachelor of Science in Radiologic Sciences (BSRS) program in the state. The department also includes the country's first-of-its-kind Master of Science in Radiologic Science program, a hybrid distance education model with Internet and on-campus components. With this successful infrastructure, the university is uniquely aligned to provide the advanced academic program and Radiologist-directed clinical preceptorships required to prepare experienced and certified radiographers for this new role as RAs. The RA program will be a "hybrid distance education" program, allowing students the benefits of clinical practice where it is most needed, usually in remote rural settings, as well as the benefits of periodic face-to-face networking with other students and with faculty during on-campus seminars. The curriculum is designed for completion in two academic years including one summer session. Students who do not already have a BS degree before beginning the RA program will be required to meet the general education core and all additional major requirements for the BSRS degree as published in the University Catalog. Therefore, the RA certificate will always be associated with a minimum of a BSRS degree. Program development will take into consideration the national certification exam to be developed by ARRT so that graduates will be eligible for national certification. For Further Information: Donna Lee Wright, EdD, RT(R) Associate Professor Radiologic Sciences Department College of Health Sciences and Human Services Midwestern State University 3410 Taft Boulevard Wichita Falls, TX 76308-2099 Toll Free: 866-575-4305 Direct: 940-397-4615 Fax: 940-397-4845 donna.wright@msutexas.edu