by Anushka Kattick-Mahabirsingh
ISRRT Council Member
The Society of Radiographers of Trinidad and Tobago had the pleasure of addressing our Year 1 Diagnostic and Therapeutic Radiography Student at COSTAATT on Tuesday 22nd November 2011. The aim of the presentation was to raise awareness of the association and to outline how we are making a difference in Healthcare.
The audience was larger than normal, about 40 students attended as opposed to years gone by when intake of students was a maximum of 20. The programme is clearly growing in numbers and grabbing the interests of recent high school graduates and individuals wanting to further their education. I did a small survey during the introduction, I asked students in the Front row to introduce themselves, stating their names and giving a reason for why they chose Radiography as a career path. These were some of the responses I received:
· I always wanted to do something in Healthcare and thought this was a good avenue.
· I studied Cancer Cytology before and would like to learn more in Radiography
· I love Physics and enjoy the technology that Radiography has to offer….so far it has been easy
· I like interacting with people
· I want to help persons and help them find out what is wrong with them
· I see this field as an avenue to get into medicine
Further to the introduction I gave a brief History of the Society, the students were quite proud to have Ms. Collins, the first President of the Society as their lecturer. I then went on to outline some of our objectives, the major objective being Education, I explained that the seminars, conferences and workshops not only focuses on technology but also allows for healthy discussion as we engage each other in best practice sharing and brainstorming for solutions to issues affecting us.
Radiography is considered a key stakeholder in Healthcare and as such we have been privileged to sit on committees overseeing draft legislation governing the Healthcare industry. The Society gives us the opportunity to have a voice as a Profession. We have certainly grown as an association and Profession. Our Website is a good example of how we have grown as a society. It has been a wonderful marketing tool for us as we have gained recognition with various organizations due to the activity on our website.
The students were quite impressed that the International Society of Radiographers and Radiologic Technologists (ISRRT) looks at our website as an example and applauded the efforts of the Society on keeping the membership up to date. I gave an introduction to the ISRRT and informed them of the World Congress to be held next year. The students felt comfortable knowing that they are a part of a larger organization both locally and internationally.
I would like to thank the lecturers of Fundamentals of Radiography for giving us the opportunity to share who we are and what we do with the ‘new kids on the block’. It is always refreshing to see enthusiasm on the faces of budding Radiographers. I urge all Radiographers to please take the students under your care and mentor them to become better than us, as they are our future.
GOD BLESS!!!