According to a new study from the American Society of Radiologic Technologists, state population is a significant predictor of radiation therapy staffing levels. The study was published in the May 2012 issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology.
ASRT researchers looked at U.S. population data from the U.S. Census Bureau and radiation therapy state population data from the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists. Using a linear regression analysis, a technique in statistics used for predicting and forecasting trends, researchers were able to identify a strong relation between state population and radiation therapy staffing levels from 2002 to 2010.
The results show that the per-capita ratio of therapists is remarkably consistent across all states, even though populations vary widely.
According to ASRT Director of Research John Culbertson, the degree to which the number of radiation therapists proportionally match state population is highly unusual. "It's rare to see a single predictor variable this significant and substantial when working with large population numbers, so we were very surprised when we discovered it during our analysis."
To examine how the population data compared with other health care professions, Culbertson and the team also looked at the relation between the number of physicians and physical therapists and state populations. The data showed similar results, confirming that state population can possibly be a strong predictor variable for multiple health care professions.
ASRT plans to use the results to estimate future demand by monitoring changes in the population of states. This could help health care professionals predict the number of radiologic technologists needed to support patient demand.
"Our goal is to continue to provide the radiologic science community with data that can help hiring managers and educational program directors make informed decisions," said Culbertson. "We hope that with continued research, we can begin forecasting how many radiation therapists or medical imaging professionals will be needed to support the increasing population."