Diagnostic Imaging

My first vet school rotation rotation was Diagnostic imaging which was a 2 week rotation where I was able to review and practice my ultrasound and radiography skills. Here is a picture I took of myself on my first day as a senior. 

 
After the first day I never wore my white coat again because we were told it didn't matter what we wore as long as we had closed toed shoes. I was all over not dressing up since we never talked to clients on this rotation and I enjoyed wearing jeans and not having to iron dress pants. 

Lead aprons, thyroid protectors, and gloves

On this rotation I learned how to  position animals for radiographs (x-rays), adjust settings on the x-ray machine, and crop and adjust the digital images. Positioning animals was fun and often involved a lot of foam blocks and medical tape to achieve the correct positioning. One cool thing about this rotation was that we saw a large variety of animals including dogs, cats, horses, a sheep, a bull, and a llama. I also was able to watch a fair number of ultrasound exams and even got scan my classmate Leahs' guinea pig one day. I still have a long way to go with my ultrasounding skills but I'm glad that I can at least reliably identify the bladder :) They also do CT scans and MRI at the vet school but we weren't really involved with those on this rotation. We did get to tour the MRI trailer which was kind of neat, only dogs and cats can fit in the MRI machine.

Me wearing my lead protective gear

Every morning we would have rounds where we go over assigned cases with a radiologist. I actually learned a lot through those rounds and hopefully the things I learned will stick with me. On Fridays we had an exam including a multiple choice test as well as a practical, interpret the radiograph portion. The exams were a little tricky at times but not too bad. Fridays were also "Food Friday" and we brought some good food to share. 

Overall, I really enjoyed the rotation and learned a lot. I like the group of students I was with and thought we worked well together. The technicians were all awesome and very helpful and knowledgeable. I enjoyed learning from and working with them. I'm sure I will see more of them in the future as a go through other rotations and have patients in need of an ultrasound or radiograph.

My badge and rings that detect radiation exposure

Diagnostic Imaging Group = Me, Leah, Ryan, and Selina