Eight students from Oregon Tech’s Radiologic Science Club traveled to Lincoln City in April to attend the Oregon Society of Radiologic Technologists (OSRT) Conference, a two-day networking and continued education event for radiologic technologists. Seven faculty members also attended the conference.
Ryan Jones, a senior in Radiologic Science, shared that the OSRT is a volunteer-led organization that connects radiographers throughout the state of Oregon by participating in legislation affecting radiographers and giving that information to its members, as well as offering Continuing Education resources that fulfill requirements set by the national registry to maintain licensure.
Radiologic Science senior Carlie Landon said the conference helped the club experience what the future looks like for their careers as radiologic technologists.
“This trip taught us a lot about what to expect as future radiologic technologists as well as making many connections with other techs throughout Oregon,” Landon said. “We learned about the new and innovative technologies to help patients receive better care. One of the new technologies was contrast-enhanced mammograms that can help diagnose women with cancer that would otherwise be hard to diagnose due to their anatomy.”
Student Elisabeth McDowell serves as the Oregon Tech liaison for OSRT. “As the Oregon Tech liaison, I have been working with several members of the OSRT board, but because of the distance between us, I haven’t been able to attend the board meetings in person. The conference allowed me to meet the people I have been working with,” McDowell said.
Jones said that of the presenters, two were Oregon Tech faculty. “Richard Carson presented on using cadavers in medical imaging education and his experiences and findings through creating and teaching the course for around a decade,” Jones said. “Rick Hoylman presented the need for emotionally intelligent leadership in healthcare and how to develop skills necessary to demonstrate it in the departments we work in or will work in once we graduate.”
Student Involvement and Belonging (SIB) Director Thomas Arce said club-related events are part of SIB’s mission to support student leadership development and to provide opportunities for all Oregon Tech students.
“Radiologic Science Club is one of 25 student clubs that identifies as an academic-based club, which supports the academic mission at the university while gathering to create a sense of community and belonging with students in a similar academic major and applied research interests,” Arce said.
SIB supports clubs to bridge the gap between the student experience in-and-out of the classroom.
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