Ever since Wilhelm Rontgen, a German scientist, began observing x-rays on November 8 1895, this once unknown type of ray, hence the tag “x” which stuck till now, has been used and developed to provide diagnostic imaging for various medical purposes over the years. Millions of people have benefited tremendously from this diagnostic imaging as physicians were able to diagnose their patients’ medical conditions better. Today, modern hospitals and physicians employ x-ray technicians for their diagnostic imaging needs. X-ray technicians are important members of the whole healthcare team and they are deservingly given high x-ray technician salary.
As in other fields, the amount of salary you’ll receive depends on a number of things. Like in the case of the x-ray technician salary, your specialty or modality, level of experience and responsibility, work setting, and geographical location affect the level of salary you’ll receive. There are a number of specialties for an x-ray technician job. Diagnostic radiography, for example, deals with examination of internal organs, bones, cavities and foreign objects. Diagnostic radiography also includes cardiovascular imaging and interventional radiography. CT or computed tomography provides cross-sectional view of the body. This is like slicing the body into cross-sectional pieces to reveal what’s inside of it. MRI or magnetic resonance imaging gives a 2-D or 3-D image or maps of different tissue types within the body. Mammography, on the other hand, uses x-ray to better analyze breast tissues. These are just examples of the many other specialties or modalities of x-ray technicians and each of them have their own x-ray technician salary level.
According to a national x-ray technician salary survey conducted by the American Society of Radiologic Technologists, the median annual salary that x-ray technicians receive is $58,673 in the United States. The specialty with the highest x-ray technician salary is medical dosimetry with $87,188 a year. Medical dosimetry involves measurement and calculation of dose for the treatment of cancer patients. The next specialty with the second highest x-ray technician salary is radiation therapy with $71,461 annually. The one with the least amount of x-ray technician salary is radiography with $52,366 a year followed by mammography, earning $56,605 a year. However, these amounts are still very competitive compared to other healthcare professions.
The State with the highest mean annual compensation is the State of California, with the x-ray technician salary reportedly at $75,873 a year. Second on the list is Massachusetts with pay of $71,574 followed by Washington D.C. with $68,575 a year in x-ray technician salary. The Sate of Connecticut with $66,471 a year and Oregon with $66,512 round up the next top States with higher x-ray technician salary. It must be noted, though, that these States with the highest compensations also are among the States with the highest in terms of cost of living index. The technician salary amount is still rather proportional to the cost of living, as the national salary survey of the American Society of Radiologic Technologists notes.
To be more competitive in this tough job market condition due to the present economy, more and more x-ray technicians are cross training in several modalities. Some radiographers, for example, are targeting Computed Tomography or Mammography to be more competitive when looking for jobs with higher x-ray technician salary. Continuing education and training is a highly recommended option for technicians who want to advance in their chosen careers.
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