Radiologic Technology最新文献

Purpose: To develop a model of clinical leadership that encompasses the specialized technical skills and leadership behaviors exhibited by clinical radiography leaders.

Methods: During this quantitative study, 432 clinical radiography leaders completed the Clinical Radiography Leadership Survey, which measured the technical skills and leadership behaviors aligned with clinical leadership in radiography. Data analysis included a correlational analysis to examine the relationships between the dimensions measuring technical skills and dimensions measuring leadership behaviors when defining clinical radiography leaders.

Results: Participant responses were correlated individually and aggregated by dimension, with Pearson values greater than 0.3 indicating a moderate or strong relationship. The highest interdimensional correlation existed between dimensions 1 (patient care skills) and 2 (technical and radiographic skills) (P = .715), while exhibiting weak correlations to dimensions associated with clinical leadership behaviors. The confirmatory factor analysis revealed that a more global view of clinical leadership behaviors, in addition to patient care and technical skills, informed participants' view of clinical radiography leadership.

Discussion: Participants viewed the technical aspect of their practice as the most salient, and survey items related to professional communication and using sound clinical decision-making skills correlated highly with the leadership behaviors exhibited and valued by clinical radiography leaders.

Conclusion: By defining the clinical expertise, technical skills, and commonly practiced leadership behaviors that clinical radiography leaders encompass, other health care professionals will recognize the unique contribution that the radiologic science profession provides.

Purpose: To analyze a radiography program's use of the Health Education Systems Incorporated Admission Assessment (HESI A2) and the HESI Exit Exam for preparing graduates to take the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT) certification and registration exam for radiography.

Methods: The program collected exam scores from the HESI Exit Exam for radiography and the ARRT radiography certification and registration exam for a 10-year period. The study included scores of 171 students who graduated from the radiography education program. The program administered the HESI A2 exam during the last 4 years of the study period, which included 81 students. The authors analyzed the data using mean differences, correlations, and a receiver operating characteristic curve analysis.

Results: The correlation of HESI A2 scores with final HESI Exit Exam scores was 0.58 and with ARRT exam scores it was 0.64, which are extremely high correlations in an admissions context. The correlation of final HESI Exit Exam scores with ARRT exam scores was 0.73, which also is a strong correlation for predicting ARRT exam success. More than 94% of students who scored above the recommended performance level of 750 on the second HESI Exit Exam passed the ARRT exam on the first attempt. A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis indicated that the final HESI Exit Exam score was a strong predictor of pass or fail status on the ARRT exam.

Discussion: The HESI A2 and Exit Exam are effective measurement tools when used with cogent testing policies. Such policies include strong proctoring practices such as rigorous in-person testing or online proctoring with an attentive, live proctor. Having practice exam results count for a reasonable amount of a course grade (eg, less than 30%) also could be a good policy for the HESI Exit Exam.

Conclusion: The HESI A2 and Exit Exam are effective tools for helping radiography educators select students for admission and measure student knowledge to help achieve positive certification outcomes.