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The medical field is advancing quickly, and some hospitals are feeling the pull. With a shortage of technicians hitting many health care facilities, the need for those with a background in radiology is increasing. That's why the idea of traveling radiology jobs is becoming more popular. With fewer technicians onsite that know how to handle aspects of radiology care, hospitals are asking the techs to come to them. And the demand for these trained individuals is growing every day.

If you're interested in a radiology job, chances are good you may be asked to travel. Many radiologists love the idea of going where they are most needed, and the chance to see the country while performing their jobs is a great benefit.

While the idea of radiology jobs based on travel certainly isn't an ideal solution, it is a quick and efficient way to make sure everyone gets the care they need regardless of where they're located.

So how does it work? Typically, a technologist who is willing to travel will be employed by an agency. The agency will put the tech in contact with various facilities, and the tech will sign a temporary contract with a hospital or clinic. The usual length of a contract with a radiologist on a travel basis is three months. The employee will be bussed or driven to the hospital location. All expenses for the tech are generally paid for by the hospital, and equipment is supplied on the premises.

For a radiology job involving travel, the tech may have to adjust to several factors all working at once to create a constantly changing work environment. Often, hospitals will have varying procedures and different types of equipment, so there's little knowing what to expect until the tenure at the temporary location actually begins.

Physicians and other technologists tend to have a great deal of respect for those with radiology travel jobs. The fact is that the traveling techs need to be more adaptive to their surroundings, and they need to know their job well enough to handle it under various- sometimes hectic- conditions. The traveling techs also have the advantage of being exposed to various ways of doing things, and may have access to more current methods and information than those techs employed at just one hospital.

If you ask a hospital staff, they'll tell you that they will avoid using traveling radiology techs whenever possible, just because of the problems that can arise. If the tech is delayed, for example, patients might be forced to miss a crucial X-ray or treatment. It's a lot to gamble on. Eventually, most hospitals hope to hire their own in-house techs, and at that time the demand for those willing to do radiology travel jobs will probably decrease.

In the meantime, however, there is a rising demand for this type of technician. If you're interested in a radiology travel job, now may be the best time to get involved.

As a traveling radiology tech, you will receive full health insurance and benefits, and be considered a full-time employee by the agency that handles your dispatches. The agency will set up contacts with hospitals in the areas where you are willing to travel. Often the agency and various hospitals will have connections, so that the same techs may return to the same hospitals time and again. Over time, relationships develop between the travel techs and the clinics they visit, and both learn to count on each other to perform their jobs correctly.

At this time, there are about 900 radiology travel job agencies in the United States.