Nuclear Medicine Technologists | What Do They Do?

Nuclear medicine technologists typically do the following:

Explain imaging procedures to the patient and answer questions
Follow safety procedures to protect the patient and themselves from excessive radiation exposure
Examine machines to make sure that they are safe and working properly
Prepare radioactive drugs and administer them to the patient
Monitor the patient to check for unusual reactions to drugs
Operate equipment that creates images of areas in the body, such as images of organs
Keep detailed records of procedures

Radioactive drugs, known as radiopharmaceuticals, give off radiation, allowing special scanners to monitor tissue and organ functions. Abnormal areas show higher-than-expected or lower-than-expected concentrations of radioactivity. Physicians then interpret the images to help diagnose the patient’s condition. For example, tumors can be seen in organs during a scan because of their concentration of the radioactive drugs.

Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition

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