Courses and Schedule

Description

Human health depends on the health of the planet. The air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat and the stability of our climate shape health outcomes long before a patient enters an imaging suite. As medical imaging continues to grow, including the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence and the data centers that support it, health care’s energy and resource demands are increasing. These increased demands influence downstream health through extreme weather, air pollution and supply chain disruptions that directly affect patients and communities. In this session, the speaker frames sustainability as a core health issue, examines how medical imaging intersects with planetary systems that support health, highlights how medicine is responding and outlines practical actions radiologic technologists can take to advance patient health today and into the future.

Objectives

• Recognize how planetary health directly influences human health.
• Understand how medical imaging, including artificial intelligence and data centers, affects health through increased energy and resource use.
• Identify practical actions radiologic technologists can take to support patient health in everyday imaging practice.

Description

The intense emotional demands of working in health care can lead to burnout, anxiety and moral distress, yet emotional wellness remains largely absent from professional education. This session introduces medical radiation technologists to creative arts techniques, such as theme boarding, writing prompts and junk journaling, as practical tools for reflection and emotional resilience. Through hands-on activities, attendees will learn how creative expression can support well-being and foster compassionate practice. No prior art experience is required.

Objectives

• Recognize the emotional demands and burdens of modern health care practice and their impact on well-being.
• Experiment with creative arts techniques to process emotions, reduce stress and support resilience.
• Explore strategies for integrating creative practices into clinical, educational and personal settings.
• Discuss the benefits and challenges of creative approaches for sustaining emotional health.

Description

During undergraduate radiography education, students attend clinical placements to gain supervised experience via observation, hands-on practice, mentoring and feedback from clinical radiographers. To prepare students for clinical placement, on-campus university education consists of face-to-face lectures, tutorials, practical skills laboratory classes, simulation-based learning and self-directed laboratory classes.

Didactic lectures synchronized with practical skills-based imaging laboratories prepare radiography students for clinical placement by teaching radiographic projections, patient care and developing communication skills, teamwork and professionalism. The combination of theory and practical skills practice translates into students reporting being more confident with knowledge recall and performing under pressure, a reduction in student errors and ultimately higher quality patient care and improved patient outcomes.

Clinical placements provide students with the opportunity to apply theoretical concepts to practice-based tasks and enable authentic learning situations to ensure graduates are work-ready at the conclusion of their studies. In this session, university lecturer and clinical radiographer Renee French explores her current doctoral research studies, sharing her expertise and inspiring others regarding original research and students’ preparation for clinical placement.

Objectives

• Understand how different pedagogical methods prepare radiography students for clinical placement.
• Appreciate theoretical frameworks and how students scaffold learning and build skills during clinical placement.
• Learn how to facilitate the transition from classroom to clinic by bridging theory into practice and mentoring students throughout clinical placement.
• Learn how to promote reflective practice as a learning strategy for students at clinical placement.

Description

Clinical leadership by radiologic technologists and radiographers plays a critical role in shaping the quality, safety and effectiveness of modern imaging services. Yet leadership in imaging practice is frequently misunderstood, conflated with formal management roles or viewed as a later-career responsibility rather than an integral component of everyday clinical practice.

In this session, the speaker explores clinical leadership as more than management, positioning it as a set of behaviors, capabilities and professional responsibilities that influence patient experience, team performance and service quality across all stages of a radiography career. Drawing on contemporary leadership theory, professional practice examples and workforce development perspectives, the speaker will clarify the distinction between clinical leadership and management while highlighting their complementary contributions to high-quality care.

Attendees will examine how clinical leadership is enacted in routine imaging practice, including decision-making, role modelling, communication and quality improvement activities. The speaker will share practical strategies for embedding leadership behaviors within daily clinical roles, demonstrating how radiologic technologists and radiographers can lead from any position within the service.

The speaker will also outline pathways for developing clinical leadership capability from early career practice to advanced and expert roles. Attendees will be encouraged to reflect on their own leadership development, identify opportunities for personal growth and consider the professional resources available to support sustained leadership capability.

This session is relevant to radiologic technologists, radiographers, educators and service leaders seeking to strengthen clinical leadership capacity, enhance service quality and support a resilient and future-focused imaging workforce.

Objectives

• Define clinical leadership and explain its importance in radiologic technologist and radiography careers and within modern imaging services.
• Recognize the impact of effective clinical leadership by radiologic technologists and radiographers on patient experience, team performance and service quality.
• Identify pathways for developing clinical leadership capability from early career practice to advanced and expert roles.
• Reflect on personal leadership development opportunities and available professional resources.

Description

As artificial intelligence continues to advance, its integration into breast imaging presents transformative opportunities to enhance diagnostic precision, optimize workflows and support individualized patient care. In this session, the speaker will explore current and emerging applications of AI in mammography, emphasizing its role as a collaborative tool that augments, rather than replaces, radiologist expertise. Through real-world examples, attendees will gain insight into how AI can improve clinical outcomes while preserving the essential human elements of empathy and compassion. The speaker will address ethical considerations, including bias, transparency and patient trust, highlighting the importance of responsible implementation. The session will underscore the evolving synergy between technology and the human touch, shaping a future in which AI empowers imaging professionals to deliver more accurate, compassionate and efficient care.

Objectives

• Explain how artificial intelligence technologies are currently being used to support breast imaging and breast cancer care.
• Describe the impact of AI on diagnostic accuracy, workflow efficiency and patient outcomes.
• Discuss the ethical and humanistic considerations of integrating AI into clinical practice.
• Identify strategies for maintaining empathy and patient-centered care in an AI-augmented imaging environment.

Description

The use of extended reality technologies in diagnostic imaging has substantially transformed clinical care in the radiology department. In this course, the speakers offer a comprehensive exploration of the latest extended reality applications, including the RN-Suite (Spectral Labs), XR90 (MediView) and RAVIN CAM (M3D), for augmented reality imaging, as well as augmented reality headsets used for mixed reality tumor boards.

Attendees will learn how these extended reality tools are applied to visualize radioactive contamination, aiding in the management of unsealed radioactive materials. The speakers will also cover the use of radiation simulation tools for training radiologic technologists, nurses, providers and law enforcement services in responding to nuclear threats, as well as training new staff in fluoroscopic and molecular imaging techniques.

Attendees will also learn about the use of augmented reality headsets in tumor board discussions. These headsets enable multidisciplinary teams to review 3D patient images for more effective care planning. The speakers will also explore the integration of tomographic examinations with real-time ultrasound imaging using extended reality tools, which enhance procedural accuracy and patient outcomes.

Attendees will gain insights into applying current imaging knowledge to extended reality applications, leveraging extended reality for departmental improvements, overcoming clinical challenges and enhancing radiation safety training and contamination evaluation techniques.

Objectives

• Explain the evolution of extended reality headsets over the past 20 years and compare them with traditional imaging review resources, such as display monitors.
• Differentiate between traditional radiation safety screening tools (e.g., gamma probes, and ionization chambers) and emerging augmented reality systems that integrate real-time imaging overlays, scintillation imaging and light detection and ranging for enhanced radioactive contamination screening.
• Identify end users who can benefit from extended reality-based simulation training, including radiologic technologists, nurses, providers, law enforcement services and nontraditional radiation support staff, and highlight the versatility and new training opportunities extended reality offers beyond the radiology department.
• Demonstrate how augmented reality headsets are being used in collaborative tumor board sessions to improve consensus among physicians and providers through enhanced 3D visualization of patient images.
• Understand how Food and Drug Administration-approved extended reality technologies combine planned tomographic imaging with augmented reality headsets and real-time ultrasound to visualize 3D segmented organs, improving procedural planning and clinical outcomes during interventional radiology.

Description

Imaging professionals often hear “we had an incident” without ever learning what happened or how it could have been prevented. They are asked to submit incidents and near miss reports without truly understanding how these reports and logs help to drive safety and quality. In this course, the speaker will translate real-world incidents, complaints and near misses into practical lessons for technologists. Drawing from real examples from the lens of a compliance and operations leader, the speaker will walk through cases involving patient identification errors, wrong or incomplete examinations, privacy concerns, communication breakdowns and documentation gaps.

Rather than focusing on blame, the speaker will emphasize what technologists can learn from both near misses and actual errors. Attendees will see how small decisions at the front desk, in the control room and at the bedside can snowball into safety events and complaints, and how thoughtful reporting and follow-up can drive better policies, education and workflows. The goal is to help technologists view the incident log as a powerful learning tool and to feel more confident speaking up, reporting concerns and participating in solutions.

Objectives

• Differentiate between a near miss, an incident and a pattern of concern in imaging practice.
• Identify common themes in real-world imaging incidents involving patient identification, examination accuracy, privacy and communication.
• Explain how technologist actions and team habits can either prevent or contribute to safety events and complaints.
• Apply a simple framework for writing clear, useful incident reports that support learning and corrective action.
• Recognize opportunities for technologists to participate in follow-up, education and workflow changes after an incident.

Description

In this session, the speaker provides a comprehensive overview of the magnetic resonance imaging safety evaluation workflow at Duke Health. Attendees will learn essential procedures for ensuring patient safety before and during MR imaging appointments, with a special focus on patients with implanted devices. Key topics include historical context and safety incidents, screening and clearance protocols, risk assessment tools, documentation and billing guidelines and the roles of technologists, device coordinators and the MR imaging safety council. The workflow emphasizes standardized processes, continuous education and collaboration to minimize risks and improve turnaround times for MR imaging examinations involving complex devices.

Objectives

• Understand magnetic resonance imaging safety protocols for implanted devices.
• Navigate the MR imaging safety evaluation workflow.
• Apply billing codes and documentation standards.
• Execute electronic medical record workflow for MR imaging safety orders.
• Recognize implementation challenges and the current status of MR safety evaluation.