Various responsibilities are to be accomplished in order to become a certified ultrasound tech. Complete training can be acquired from accredited training institutions offering sonography programs. There are three options to be considered as applicant for the certification exam. The applicant must finish one of the programs; one-year programs, two-year associate degree programs or the four-year bachelor degree programs. After acquiring any of the available degrees for ultrasound courses, the student graduates and is now ready to take certification examination to get a license.
Before securing a certification from the American Registry of Diagnostic Medical Sonographer, there are certain requirements for the applicant. It is required for the applicant to finish an associate degree or bachelor’s degree program to be able to take an examination and become a registered diagnostic medical sonographer (RDMS). The certification doesn’t end here.
Before a registered technician is able to register with ARMDS, it is a requirement to pass the examination in the sub specialty like obstetric and gynaecologic sonography, abdominal sonography, ophthalmologic sonography, vascular sonography or neurosonography. Aside from the sub specialty examination; it is also required to pass the general physical principles as well as the examination in instrumentation.
Upon passing all the required examination, the technician gets the license. However, all ultrasound sonographers are required by the ARMDS to have a continuing education so that he stays in touch with the new developments in the field of sonography.
In every examination the ultrasound technician may take, it is needed for him to review and practice answering questions related to the examination. Here is a sample of an examination the sonographer will encounter in the series of tests he will be taking for the certifications.
1. What is the sound frequency of ultrasound that is above the audible range?
a. greater than 40,000 cycles per second
b. greater than 30,000 cycles per second
c. greater than 20,000 cycles per second
d. greater than 10,000 cycles per second
2. What happens to the frequency when attenuation increases?
a. Increases
b. Decreases
3. All of the following Doppler techniques provide range resolution except for one. Which technique doesn’t provide range resolution?
a. Power Doppler
b. Pulsed-wave Doppler
c. Color Doppler
d. Continuous-wave Doppler
4.. What is the equivalent of 1 atmosphere (14.7 psi)?
a. 10kpa
b. 50kpa
c. 75kpa
d. 100kpa
5. Where is aliasing factor unique?
a. power Doppler
b. continuous wave Doppler
c. pulsed Doppler
d. none of the above
6. In a soft tissue at 5.0 MHz, the average velocity of the ultrasound is?
a. 1540 meters per second
b. 1450 millimeters per second
c. 1540 meters per millisecond
d. 1540 miles per hour
7. What illustrates the angle of refraction?
a. Archimedes Principle
b. Snell’s Law
c. Huygen’s Law
d. velocity differences
8. What is impedance factor?
a. Velocity times density
b. velocity times speed
c. speed times density
d. none of the above
9. What is scattering?
a. redirection of sound beams in only one direction
b. redirection of sound beams in many directions
c. the transfer of heat
d. all of the above
10. In an air/liquid interface, what is the percentage of ultrasound reflection?
a. high
b. medium
c. low
d. 50%
In the field of sonography, a license is optional but it is a tool to be a top choice for employers when hiring process begins. Licensed ultrasound sonographers are also needed in some states that have strict state rules such as the technician must be licensed before applying in hospitals, laboratories and clinics. Indeed, ultrasound technician job is such a rewarding one but behind the benefits lays a job full of responsibilities.
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