The Past, Present, and Future of Radiology and X-Ray Technologists

Introduction

By tracing the historical development of radiography as a distinct field of diagnostic medicine, along with the evolving role of X-ray technologists in the delivery of quality health care within the public hospital and private practice model, it is possible to identify the attributes of this field that make it a foundational science within the practice of modern medicine. The ever-expanding ranks of X-ray technologists now serve a variety of essential functions within the health care delivery system, assisting in cutting-edge diagnostic assessment processes that have improved patient outcomes so drastically since the discovery of X-rays in the late 19th century. This paper traces the development of radiography, radiology, and X-ray technologists within the medical realm, including a review of the field's past, present, and future, and the implications of this science for the further improvement of positive patient outcomes through preventative medicine.

As the medical profession gains a greater understanding of the various approaches to healthcare delivery, the concept of segmenting the services prescribed to a patient into primary, secondary, and tertiary care has emerged as one of the most useful advancements in the field. The preventative measures advocated by proponents of primary health care (PHC) are designed to improve a patient's quality of life in such a way as to reduce or eliminate the prospects of becoming ill or injured. Among the fundamental precepts of PHC are the administration of immunizations to guard against viruses and other contagious infections, the development of a nutritious daily diet to improve the body's natural immune defenses, and the use of X-ray technology and other radiological methods to detect abnormalities within bones, organs, and blood.

The increasingly prevalent use of radiology as a fundamental technique within the delivery of PHC has been documented by a number of empirical statistical studies. On average, "radiology was requested for 12% of patients seen: males 39.40% and women 60.59% … (and) the radiological findings caused 18.72% of doctors to change their therapeutic approach or diagnostic opinion, with mammographies (38.46%), barium meals (35.29%) and abdominal ecographies (31.57%) representing the most effective radiological investigations in terms of relevant findings" (Nicolas & Fernando, 1996). The evolution of radiology as a branch of medical science, and the ever-expanding role of X-ray technologists in modern hospitals and health care centers, warrant further study in order to ascertain the importance of this field during the past, present, and future.

Radiology's Past

During the twilight of the 19th century, the German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen detected for the first time a curious form of radiation that, while passing readily through clothing and human tissue, remained unable to penetrate bone, metal, and other solid matter. Röntgen's discovery of what he termed the "X-ray" in 1895 was significant in its own right — as evidenced by his reception of the Nobel Prize in Physics for his pioneering research — but the work of contemporaries such as the English surgeon John Hall-Edwards and professor of medicine Gilman Frost soon made it clear that the study of X-rays and the emerging field of radiography had clear implications for the improvement of health care delivery.

Nurses, physicians, and surgeons quickly realized that the ability to scan skeletal images for the presence of fractures, or to observe subcutaneous images while detecting metallic foreign objects such as bullets, represented a monumental progression in diagnostic methodology. Throughout the 20th century, radiography expanded to include crucial fields of medical inquiry such as ultrasound imaging, mammography, fluoroscopy, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and other techniques now considered routine.