The introduction of new technology within nuclear medicine appears to have shifted the traditional positioning of the nuclear medicine practitioner. There is a need for careful consideration around the appropriate use of new technology, in order to aid patient diagnosis and potential subsequent monitoring of treatment response.
How does a workforce, which now works with hybrid imaging technology ensure they are able to control the daily workflow within the department? Given the automated aspects of patient worklists and seemless connectivity associated with acquiring and processing data, the professional group need to ensure their involvement in the acquisition of clinical information is central to the patient's journey. The use of technology needs to complement the role of the healthcare practitioner, rather than replace it.
Friday, 21 December 2012
Thursday, 13 September 2012
Creating new identities
The introduction of hybrid imaging technology has undoubtedly begun to create a new society of members, who only have exposure to an environment whereby anatomical and functional imaging within a single environment is a possibility.
With this notion in mind, there could be potential disengagement from members of the traditional nuclear medicine community as a new culture of roles, identities and relationships begin to emerge. Symbolic interactionism is a means of understanding the emergence of new societies or cultures within an organisation, along with the creation of new language, relics and behaviours.
This is an important aspect of my research, as I need to understand the potential tensions and conflict within the nuclear medicine community as a whole, as the training needs of all practitioners needs to be considered, not just those who appear to be fully engaging with the technological changes. So there is a collective need to consider the existing (traditional) nuclear medicine community members, who possess a wealth of experience in terms of undertaking physiological examinations and all of the associated factors (e.g. patient preparation, processing); the emerging workforce who typically would include practitioners who may have some experience with traditional nuclear medicine procedures but are more exposed to working practices involving hybrid techniques. The final group of practitioners are those coming into the nuclear medicine environment for the first time. This group of practitioners/ trainees may learn common behaviours from both of the aforementioned groups of practitioners, including the use of specific language, rituals and role development.
With this notion in mind, there could be potential disengagement from members of the traditional nuclear medicine community as a new culture of roles, identities and relationships begin to emerge. Symbolic interactionism is a means of understanding the emergence of new societies or cultures within an organisation, along with the creation of new language, relics and behaviours.
This is an important aspect of my research, as I need to understand the potential tensions and conflict within the nuclear medicine community as a whole, as the training needs of all practitioners needs to be considered, not just those who appear to be fully engaging with the technological changes. So there is a collective need to consider the existing (traditional) nuclear medicine community members, who possess a wealth of experience in terms of undertaking physiological examinations and all of the associated factors (e.g. patient preparation, processing); the emerging workforce who typically would include practitioners who may have some experience with traditional nuclear medicine procedures but are more exposed to working practices involving hybrid techniques. The final group of practitioners are those coming into the nuclear medicine environment for the first time. This group of practitioners/ trainees may learn common behaviours from both of the aforementioned groups of practitioners, including the use of specific language, rituals and role development.
Saturday, 16 June 2012
Impact of hybrid imaging on patient management
The use of a hybrid imaging technique such as SPECT/CT or PET/CT may bring advantages to the overall patient management that may have not been initially forcasted. From working alongside clinical nuclear medicine practitioners, there is a degree of 'incidental findings' that may occur within a hybrid imaging procedures. Questions that immediately come to mind in this situation:
1) What are the ethics and clinical protocol/s associated with this sort of situation?
2) How are nuclear medicine practitioners trained to spot the incidental findings?
3) Can autonomous practice be adopted by practitioners, to enable them to fully utilise the diagnostic capabilities of hybrid imaging (e.g. Intravenous Contrast injection)?
There is also the matter of reporting the resultant images and ensuring the data sets acquired match highlight any additional information.
Monday, 4 June 2012
Early adoption theory
I have begun to explore the role of 'technology ownership' within a community, such as nuclear medicine / hybrid imaging. The introduction of new technology, such as hybrid imaging components and software has resulted in a potential shift in the ownership of such technology.
Who actually owns this new technology and who are the early adopters?
Early adoption theory (Rogers, 1971) highlights the percentage of people who readily accept new technology and those who 'lag'. This is often referred to as 'cultural lag' and may demonstrate itself in varying degrees across the workforce and at a variable pace across different clinical environments
Who actually owns this new technology and who are the early adopters?
Early adoption theory (Rogers, 1971) highlights the percentage of people who readily accept new technology and those who 'lag'. This is often referred to as 'cultural lag' and may demonstrate itself in varying degrees across the workforce and at a variable pace across different clinical environments
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