The average salaries of radiologic technologists rose by 1.7 percent in the past three years and now average $62,763, considerably higher than the U.S. per capita income of $42,693, according to the 2013 American Society of Radiologic Technologists Wage and Salary Survey.

Agfa HealthCare announces today the availability of its newest Direct Radiography (DR) detector, the DX-D 35C, an 11x14 inch sized wireless panel which will be on display in booth #310 at AHRA 2013, the Association for Medical Imaging Management’s Annual Meeting, July 28-31, 2013 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

With $1 billion in payments on the line, hospitals are homing in on patient satisfaction. They are hiring chief patient satisfaction officers and patient navigators and tapping into volunteers to check on patient needs. Other strategies include “yacker trackers” to hush noisy nurses and yoga for patients and staff.

A head-turning analysis has estimated annual national costs in the U.S. for patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with dizziness at $4 billion. CT imaging, which is often ineffective and overused in these cases, accounted for $360 million in costs in 2011.

Emotional intelligence (EQ) cannot be ignored. It accounts for 58 percent of performance in all types of jobs. Research has shown that 90 percent of top performers are high in EQ. There is also a link between EQ and earnings; people with high EQs make an average of $29,000 more per year than those with low EQs.

Radiology has occupied healthcare’s hot seat, albeit not alone, for a good part of the last decade. However, a growing group of stakeholders is identifying strategies to help radiologists re-position the specialty. They suggest focusing on clinical consulting, leadership and service.

The first prospective study to examine activities hospital-based radiologists perform showed imagers spend 36.4 percent of their time on image interpretation. The study published in the July issue of Journal of American College of Radiology showed frequent interruptions and calculated total clinical productivity at 87.7 percent.

One of the nation’s largest radiology practices, Jefferson Radiology, PC, based in Hartford, Conn., has entered into a strategic partnership with McKesson Business Performance Services (BPS) for comprehensive revenue cycle management services. The arrangement will help the practice keep pace with a fast-changing reimbursement environment, meet growing regulatory demands and implement cost containment strategies.