Q&A: New Hampshire rad tech society president on advocating for medical imaging, rad therapy professionals

This past year, the New Hampshire Society of Radiologic Technologists (NHSRT) and its president, Brandy Cusson, made strides on behalf of the radiologic science community, earning them both the American Society of Radiologic Technologists 2017 Award for Advocacy.

Radiology Business spoke with Cusson who was instrumental in securing licensure for medical imaging and radiation therapy professionals in New Hampshire. She discusses her experiences and the NHSRT’s involvement in working to engage advocates.

And though the organization has helped with the gains made in New Hampshire, Cusson knows it could be taken away at any time.

“We already faced three challenges, one of which was to repeal the law, and could face many more, so we’re constantly monitoring legislatiom," she said. "We’re proud of New Hampshire, its citizens, technologists and legislators for taking this step and we will work hard to see that it continues.”

Radiology Business: What prompted you to want to secure licensure for medical imaging and radiation therapy professionals in New Hampshire?
Brandy Cusson: There was a significant gap in patient safety. Patients had a blind trust, thinking that they were being imaged by credential technologists. However, they were being irradiated by individuals who have no training in radiation safety, as well as other important aspects of imaging. This lack of training is also detrimental to the employee taking the images, as they are not following proper safety measures to protect themselves. The importance of licensure really can’t be overstated. It sets the standard for education, it assures patients of safe, high quality care and it means that physicians will receive diagnostic images that are clear and clinically meaningful.

What was it like for the imaging professionals in New Hampshire when the official bill was signed in August?
It was a very satisfying moment. For us, it was the culmination of months of work: testimony, meetings, conference calls and lots more meetings. But, it was also the beginning of setting up a framework for how to enact state licensure including creating a board of medical imaging and radiation therapy, where I now serve as chairman.

Were there any challenges for the medical imaging professionals and radiation therapists board when they began their work?
We have only just begun and the challenges are bountiful. We have to be true to the most important piece of the legislation, patient safety. That is a hard thing to impress upon those who do not understand the extreme important of quality educated professionals. We have struggled with the balance of doing what is equitable and right with what people desire. In addition to creating professional standards for licensure, the law mandated the creation of a seven-member board to administer the license regulations. And that took a while. One hurdle is sifting through the jargon to really get down to the meat of the law, which has proved difficult when some perceive the law differently than the way it was written or intended. Right now, the board consists of a radiologic technologist, radiologist, nuclear medicine technologist, sonographer and one public member; we still have two seats open. We have tremendous support and help from the New Hampshire Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, they have been patient and gracious.

What was your role in securing licensure for medical imaging and radiation therapy professionals?
We worked with the N.H. State Radiation Advisory Committee, to see if this was a viable option for NH. We then meet with the Department of Health to try and get their support; they were unable to help drive the bill forward with us but were extremely supportive in the process and helped us navigate the legislative process. We also had the distinct pleasure of working the ASRT closely on what to do, drafting the bill and fielded many desperate phone calls for help. We also had tremendous support from the IBEW Local 2320; they gave us some lessons on how to navigate the legislative process, what to do and what to expect. While the bill went “to session,” we worked with our legislative committee to ensure bipartisan support of the bill and helped to secure six cosponsors, including Senator Sharon Carson. She was instrumental in passing this legislation through and continues to be an advocate for us. NHSRT rallied our members to write their legislators and asked them to meet with them to discuss the importance of this bill. We attended hearings and meetings and did our best to educate everyone involved. I’m very proud of the work we did on this piece of legislation and grateful to everyone who helped us.