The Cowboy Cathode
The Official Newletter of the Wyoming Society of Radiologic
Technologists
Editor's Note: This version is modified from
the edition mailed to our membership because of
updated or duplicate information that may be found elsewhere on our web site.
Spring 1998
WSRT Meets with the Wyoming Board of RT Examiners
Mike Lewis, President of the Wyoming Society of Radiologic Technologists, met with the Wyoming Board of Radiologic Technologists Examiners on April 22 to discuss what Lewis described as some inconsistencies between the Wyoming State Statutes and the WBRTE’s Rules and Regulations, which are also considered Wyoming "law"."Through a series of phone calls and messages that I received from several techs around the state, it became clear to me that a definite problem existed. After some research I found some discrepancies that exist between the statutes and the rules and regulations, or at least in the interpretation of those laws in Wyoming pertaining to special licensing of technologists."
Specifically, the issues surrounded the use of what is termed a "special" license in Wyoming. According to state statutes, a "special" license may be issued to an uncertified person to practice as a radiologic technologist if necessary because of regional hardships or emergency conditions, provided that the person has completed a course of study in radiologic technology. The special license is issued on a one-time basis to an individual and expires after 12 months.
"Unfortunately, sometime in the past, the board’s rules and regulations inadvertently changed the interpretation of the statutes to "technician," said Lewis. "Furthermore, the rules and regulations place definite restrictions on the scope of practice of these ‘technicians.’ While we agree that technicians should absolutely be restricted in their scope of practice, it seemed clear to me that the intent and spirit of the original statute was to define the special license as to allow uncertified yet qualified people such as senior students to practice as technologists for a limited time." The board agreed that there were some obvious inconsistencies that needed to be addressed.
"Wyoming is a rural state and as such can have problems recruiting registered technologists from outside sources. Even in Cheyenne and Casper, we rely on the college programs for a supply of people completing their college degrees to work in the clinical settings as technologists.
"In my opinion, a hardship condition exists in Wyoming and the statutes provide a much needed means of making sure that we have an adequate supply of qualified personnel to work here." Typically, students are hired prior to graduation by local clinical sites and hospitals. The students apply for a "special" license from the state, which by its own definition allows them to work legally as technologists.
The question then was what essentially their scope of practice should be. The statutes dictate that one must pass "a course of study" in order to be issued a license in Wyoming. Lewis stated, "The interpretation would have to hold that completing a course of study means completing those courses that will deem someone competent in performing tasks consistent with the profession. In this case, the statute describes ‘technologists’ so obviously these people must be deemed competent to be able to perform as technologists, even before graduation. Because of liability issues, neither a clinical site nor a college program will endorse a student’s application to have a special license unless they can determine that the individual is indeed competent. We have to remember that these licenses are issued due to hardship or emergencies and not handed out to just anyone that wants one."
Also at issue was whether the special license actually expires at such time that the licensee passes the ARRT certification examination. The board agreed that the statutes do not dictate that a special license must expire after someone becomes an ARRT certified technologist but, in fact, the license shall continue as valid for the individual until it expires naturally 12 months after its issuance.
In other issues, the board pointed out that they were having a serious problem with people failing to renew their general licenses on time. Lewis also agreed that it was a problem. "The law clearly puts the onus of responsibility on the individual to maintain their license. The board is required to send out notices 30 days in advance but they can only do so if they have the correct address. Failure to receive the notice however, whether it is actually sent or not, is not deemed a reasonable excuse for failing to renew your license. The law is quite clear on that."
"Today was a great day for the WSRT and the technologists of Wyoming," said President Lewis. "I am proud that the WSRT and the WBRTE are working together as a cooperative alliance to ensure proper licensing in Wyoming and I am very proud to have been a part of it today. We have taken some definite steps towards ensuring quality patient care and protecting our profession in the future.
"This is the voice of the WSRT and what we are about," added Lewis. "We are advocates for our members and for our profession and quite honestly, I can’t help feeling that had the WSRT not intervened today, the future of licensing in Wyoming could have taken a very different turn. This possibly could have been disastrous for all clinical sites that depend on student technologists."
Lewis concluded by saying that less than one-fourth of all RT’s in Wyoming are members of the WSRT. "We were there today, discussing issues on behalf of all RT’s in Wyoming, not just our members and what we accomplished will benefit this profession everywhere in the state. Hopefully this demonstrates that the WSRT is a true professional organization and it will inspire others to join. We really need our membership to continue growing."
Membership Information
The membership files have been updated since the last
Cowboy Cathode. If we have made an error we apologize and if you have or know of
any problems or questions regarding memberships including address changes, please
don’t hesitate to contact Mary Bond at execsecretary@wsrt.org .
It’s important
that we have a current listing of ALL of our members. I encourage you to pass your copy of
the Cathode around to other techs in your departments that may not have received a copy so
that we have a chance to correct any errors and also a chance to encourage prospective
members to join. If you have paid your membership but have not received a card, if you
need to pay and haven’t received notice, or if you can help us locate other members,
please write to or call Mary ASAP!
Committees
I am always looking for additional people to serve on committees. A complete description of each committee and its function is in the packet that each of you was sent by Linda Holden. My interest is in making sure that various corners of the state have some input in this year’s activities and that everything is not centered in Cheyenne. Please contact me ASAP if you are interested at president@wsrt.org.
Primarily, the biggest addition should be an opportunity for evening courses on both Thursday and Friday nights. This will give members the chance to get more courses in a day, or a chance to attend some classes if they aren’t able to get registered earlier in the day. The WSRT is planning on including dinner with these classes as well, making it an even better value.
Along with a list of known speakers from Wyoming and the surrounding area, Phil Ballinger of Merrill’s Atlas has agreed to come to Wyoming and present a few sessions. For those of you that know or remember him, he is quite an interesting speaker and very knowledgeable as well as entertaining. Wyoming is fortunate to have another opportunity to have him as our guest.
Other highlights of the convention so far are that lunches on both Friday and Saturday are also included with your registration as well as several breaks during the day. Door prizes are awarded throughout the day as well, thanks to our many sponsors. By the way, the Ways and Means Committee can always use help with donations so please call or write to the WSRT with any contributions or ideas.
Of course, there will be the annual banquet and awards dinner on Saturday night and what usually amounts to a large raffle. "I hope that people will choose to spend an extra evening in Thermopolis, come to the banquet and enjoy themselves. They deserve it." said Mike Lewis. "Linda Holden will be installed as president of the WSRT, as well as the other elected officers still to be voted on. I’d like to invite each and every member of the WSRT to come to this special event."
Costs for the convention are still being adjusted and evaluated. You may see a slight increase in cost, however the WSRT is providing lunch and dinner for two days so factoring your cost for food should be considered when the prices are released. Considering the beautiful location, the amount of available education and the additional meals included, you should find the convention in Thermopolis a great value and a heck of a lot of fun! WSRT Board
Meets in Cheyenne The WSRT Officers and Board of Directors met in Cheyenne at CB & Potts for their annual Spring board meeting on March 27. Mike Lewis, Linda Holden, Jeff Tammen, Becky Childers and Starla Mason were in attendance; Treasurer Ken Helfrick was unable to attend as well as Barb Jordan, our member of the Board of Radiologic Technologist Examiners. Executive Secretary Mary Bond was present during the dinner meeting.
Actions by the board were as follows:
1. Vision and Mission statements for the
WSRT have been written and will be submitted to the general membership for approval.
2. A new job description will be written for the position of Executive
Secretary. This will be submitted to the general membership for approval. Pending
approval, the Executive Secretary’s job performance will be evaluated once per year
by the board.
3. A calendar project involving the WSRT and the LCCC students was
approved by the board as a money-making proposal. The cost per calendar is approximately
$6 and they will be sold for $18. $2 per calendar will go to the LCCC Radiography students
for their hard work at making the calendars and the rest will be retained by the WSRT with
a hopeful profit of $10 per calendar.
4. The budget for the next term was reviewed in depth. The budget has
been steadily declining for several years, probably due to declining membership funds as
well as increasing conference costs. Mike Lewis appointed an ad hoc committee to research
the issue and present it to the general membership at the annual conference. An increase
in membership dues is being considered pending their investigation of other state
society’s dues in our region.
5. Tentative fees for the annual conference were approved as follows:
Full Conference
WSRT Members - $180
Non-Members - $250
Student Members - $35
Student Non-Members - $50
One day
WSRT Members - $100
Non-Members - $140
½ day (4 hours ECE)
WSRT Members - $50
Non-Members - $90
Associate Members - $100
Associate Non-Members - $200
Vendor Tables - $125
6. Several by-laws changes were approved
by the board and will be mailed out to the general membership for approval at the annual
conference.
7. The board reviewed a position statement regarding DEXA scans.
8. The board suggested and approved that the editor of the Cowboy
Cathode shall also be in charge of the WSRT web site.
9. Mike will be researching some issues with the Board of Technologist
Examiners in hopes of establishing a cooperative alliance between the WSRT and the WBRTE.
Look for updates in this issue of the Cathode.
Incentive Plan Don’t forget to take advantage of the newest membership incentive program! Get one new member to join and we will knock off 25% of your next renewal to the WSRT! Get two new members to join and we will take off 50%! Get five new members to join the WSRT and we will pay for your membership to the WSRT for one full year! That’s right! You will receive your next year’s membership to the WSRT absolutely free! Several members have taken advantage of this already and are on their way to FREE memberships!
Nominations for 1998
– 1999
Closed (sort of)
Nominations for the WSRT’s election of officers have
now drawn to a close. However, if you would like to run for office
please get in touch with the WSRT immediately. Although
nominations closed April 30, the board may consider allowing you to run for office if we
are notified before the ballots are completed, due to a shortage of nominees.
The following people have been nominated: President-Elect -
Leslie Troastle; Vice-President - Peggy Jereb, Melissa Mahaffy, Billie Jean Phillips;
Secretary - Kristy Nystrom; Treasurer - Vacant.
The following people are already officers or board members for
the 1998 – 1999 term:
President - Linda Holden; Past-President - Mike Lewis
President’s Message
Mike Lewis, President - WSRT - Here we are just
past midway through this term of the WSRT. At last year’s annual conference, I
outlined some goals for the WSRT and want to give you an update.
First, I have reviewed our Articles of Incorporation and they are
fairly simple in nature so we have forgone their review by an attorney. Next, Kristy
Nystrom and I have completed our efforts towards developing Vision and Mission Statements
for the WSRT. I think that we’ve managed to capture the essence of what our society
is about and where we want to go in the future. If you agree, we ask for your approval of
them in the next few months on the general ballot. You may read them elsewhere in this
edition of the Cathode.
I outlined a goal to the board of directors last fall to see
membership grow by 100% by the next annual conference. So far, this has been disappointing
although we have grown by a small amount. There are approximately 450 registered
technologists in Wyoming. Only about one-fourth of them are members of the WSRT.
Right now, some states in the US are really fighting for what we
already have – licensing. We are so fortunate to have state enforced standards for
our profession, which is like an insurance policy for our customers that they are getting
true professional, quality care. So how can we help the others in our profession? By
increasing our memberships, both at the state and national levels. The ASRT has
experienced phenomenal growth in the last few years, especially from those places that
really need assistance. This growth has given all of us a serious voice in congress to
push for federal minimum standards.
At the state level, we really need everyone’s help as well.
This issue of the Cowboy Cathode is being sent to every RT in Wyoming with a mailing
address at the WBRTE in hopes that we can reach out to those people who aren’t
members yet and invite them to be a part of their own professional society. The WSRT
offers some great values to our members with education, advocacy and representation at the
state and national levels. However, finances are beginning to suffer and my fear is that
we will either have to start limiting services or raise dues and conference fees, or both.
We can possibly avoid this with increased memberships. The board can only do so much,
although we have provided a membership incentive program for our present members in hopes
of helping to increase our numbers. Please, let’s get membership going for the good
of the society and the profession.
Lastly, I took on a project as president of the WSRT this past
month to form a cooperative alliance
with the State Board of Radiologic Technology Examiners in
respect to licensing requirements in Wyoming. I am happy to report that I feel great
strides were taken forward in ensuring fair, yet adequate licensing requirements for
Wyoming. You can read about it elsewhere in this issue.
Please utilize the WSRT’s own internet web site. I update it
often and am finding more and more people using it. It’s a quick source of updated
information. You can find it at www.wsrt.org.
Position Statement of the
WSRT
Concerning DEXA Scan Operators
We’ve heard rumblings around the state
that there may be a possible attempt to amend state laws in the future to allow limited
training office personnel or technicians to operate DEXA scanners in places such as
doctor’s offices, chiropractic clinics and perhaps even health clubs. In light of the
push for federal minimum standards at the national level and our own current standards of
practice in Wyoming, we offer the first draft of an official position statement by the
WSRT concerning this. Please write with any suggestions or comments.
"It is the position of the Wyoming Society of Radiologic
Technologists that any medical personnel operating a DEXA scanner meet a minimum standard
of certification reflecting formal training in the application of ionizing radiation, such
as ARRT certification and state licensing requirements for the following reasons:
a) Maintain quality radiological care in the state of Wyoming
b) Provide consistent patient and operator safety
c) Provide the highest level of radiation protection to the citizens of
Wyoming
W.S. 33-37-102 - Acceptable Practices was written to ensure that
only formally trained, qualified and licensed personnel be allowed to apply radiation to
human beings. To amend this to anything less is to take a step backward in the quality of
patient care to the citizens of Wyoming. The WSRT commits itself in advocating
professional standards of quality as well as maintaining the integrity of this profession
and its ethical standards. Therefore, we promote that only professionally licensed and
accredited personnel falling under W.S. 33-37-101 thought 33-27-113 be allowed to operate
DEXA scanners now and into the future."
The
Wyoming Board of Radiologic Technologist Examiners
Click on the link above for an interesting article concerning licensing laws, rules & regulations in the State of Wyoming
WSRT Holds
Spring Conference
The Wyoming Society of Radiologic
Technologists held their annual Spring Conference on Saturday, March 28. This was a
teleconference that had sites in Cheyenne, Casper, Powell, Gillette and Evanston. There
were six different classes offered for six CE credits. Although attendance in Cheyenne was
very good, attendance at the other four sites was disappointing and has the WSRT board
questioning whether the Spring teleconferences should continue in the future.
"As the WSRT, we are committed to offering education
opportunities to our membership," said WSRT president Mike Lewis. "However, the
board is questioning the cost effectiveness of the teleconference. We’re not sure why
other sites are not seeing the participation that the Cheyenne site is, especially since
only one speaker was presented from that site.
"The teleconference can be a effective way to offer
education in large rural areas such as Wyoming by offering several different sites as
opposed to a single site as we used to do. The teleconference can run over $200/hour but
the cost can easily be offset with enough participation, the operative word being
"participation."
Members at all five sites agreed that they thought that the
teleconference was a good idea when questioned at the end of the day by president Lewis.
They were disappointed to learn that the board was considering dropping the teleconference
in the future.
"I hate to see it go because I think it’s a great way
to reach our membership. The board has to consider the financial well being of the Society
as a whole though. We are exploring alternative answers such as raising the price slightly
and seeking cost discounts for the sites. Corporate sponsorship could help but may take
away from the Fall conference," said Lewis. "I intend to address the issue at
the annual conference in Thermopolis. I think that the membership will need to convince
the board to keep the conference in the future as we are definitely concerned about the
cost impact to the Society.
"I think the solution is easy enough – our members
simply need to attend and support the teleconference. The cost is usually the same whether
there are five people or fifty people per site. We can’t force people to attend
though and right now, even the corporations will hesitate to help if attendance is low.
We’ll find out at the Fall conference what will happen next year."
The WSRT wishes to thank the speakers that presented at this
year’s conference. The discussions were diverse, in depth and quite interesting. If
you would like to see the teleconference format continue in the future, we encourage you
to contact the WSRT board with your comments and
suggestions.
ASRT Happenings
The WSRT has jumped in with both feet supporting the
ASRT’s push for Federal Minimum Standards. The ASRT sent its members in Wyoming a
letter encouraging them to write to Senator Mike Enzi and Representative Barbara Cubin in
support of amendments that will strengthen the Consumer-Patient Radiation Health and
Safety Act of 1981 that will enforce minimum standards nationwide for radiologic
technologists.
The Senate recently passed a bill,
S. 537, reauthorizing the Mammography Quality Standards Act of 1992 (MQSA). The MQSA
reauthorization bill is now being heard in the House of Representatives (H.R. 1289). We
are encouraging support of an attachment to an amendment of H.R. 1289 that would enforce
the Consumer-Patient Radiation Health and Safety Act. We believe that this amendment
complements the overall goal and intent of MQSA, which is to ensure the safety and quality
of radiologic examinations.
Several members sent personal letters to each
congressperson in addition to a letter that was faxed to clinical sites around the state
by our Public Relations committee. Signatures were obtained from as many people as
possible for this, then the letter was sent to Washington. Hats off to all RT’s in
the state who signed or sent letters in support of this!
President Mike Lewis and President-Elect Linda Holden will
be attending the national ASRT convention in Houston, TX, June 6 – 11 as the official
delegates from Wyoming. During their time there, they will also be attending the 1998
Leadership Academy for two days. Since the ASRT sponsors the Leadership Academy, they will
send a $500 rebate to the WSRT upon Mike and Linda’s completion of the course.
Kristy Nystrom of Casper will also be attending the ASRT
conference as the region 3 delegate for mammography. Betty Schans of Colorado, also a
member of the WSRT will be attending as the region 3 delegate for education. Just for your
future information, Peggy Jereb was selected as the 1999 delegate for CT for region 3.
Hats off to Linda Holden for making the ASRT Honor Roll in
the April 1998 edition of the ASRT Scanner for her contribution to the ASRT Educational
Foundation. Linda was also notified that she will become a Fellow of the ASRT at the 1999
convention in Portland, OR. Way to go Linda!
We encourage you to fill out the ASRT Resolution Opinion
Form on page 32 of the April Scanner and mail it to either Mike or Linda before the
conference. They can only represent you if they know what you want.
News
from
Ways & Means
The WSRT’s Ways & Means
Committee - Melissa Mahaffy, Danielle Arterberry and Leslie Troastle are needing
everyone’s assistance in preparing for the annual conference in September.
Specifically, they need door prizes as well as raffle prizes. The annual WSRT raffle is
one of the largest fund raisers we have and we really need everyone’s help to
continue the outstanding success that we’ve had in the past. If you would like to
officially help out on the committee, please contact us soon!
Also, we are still waiting for additional Buttrey cards. If
you would specifically like to receive a Buttrey card, which passes along a small
percentage of money you spend there back to the WSRT, and didn’t receive one
previously, please contact Mike Lewis and let him know, or let us know directly and we can
forward one to you.
WSRT Board Submits Vision and Mission Statements to the Membership for Approval
