To recognize National Radiologic Technology Week, I asked respected CT technologist (and our CT supervisor) Mario Ramos to share his perspective on the benefits of low radiation dose CT. — Dr. Shuman

Proper dose reduction is not just about having the right equipment. It is essential that everyone is involved, and that they all work as a cohesive team in the name of patient safety.

Management supports us by making sure that the right machines, maintenance contracts and people are in place. Our radiologists ultimately determine the level of noise we allow in images, and that dictates the steps we take to reduce dose. As technologists, we have to have the right workflow in place to make sure that all those steps for dose reduction are done, such as adjusting kV, ma, noise index, and proper shielding. Our support staff assists with the busy work that can take away from the focus on the scan at hand, and the physics teams keep our QA/QC protocols in check. We are very fortunate here at the University of Washington to have all these things in place and know that as equipment and scanning techniques continue to evolve, we are able to ensure the highest level of image quality while maintaining proper dose reduction practices.