What was your aim?
Reporting is something I have been interested in since I first qualified and so I jumped at the chance to be able to go on the MSK reporting course. Moving into advanced practice is such an amazing opportunity and something I would urge other radiographers to aim for. Radiographers can play such a huge role in a patient pathway and with so many reporting backlogs etc at the moment, I believe that Reporting Radiographers can make such a difference.
What were the challenges?
The course itself is certainly challenging; however the most difficult aspect is balancing the workload with your everyday work, and home life. SWITA was very helpful in making sure we felt supported and fought for our study time. I think it was also especially difficult in a Trust where there isn’t a big team of other reporting radiographers to help offer support. I do feel very lucky that management and consultants here at GWH and staff at SWITA could not have helped more and I will be eternally grateful!
What were the results?
I am pleased to say that I am now reporting solo which, whilst initially terrifying, is also really rewarding and challenges me constantly. I think all of my SWITA cohort would agree that we would not have passed without their help and support. I cannot imagine what it must have been like to suffer through listening to our first 100 reports or so. It was such a supportive and challenging environment to work in and I would still go every week if they’d have me!
What were the learning points?
I am not sure I could sum up all the things I learned at SWITA and as part of the university course, I know infinitely more than I did when I started that’s for sure. It was interesting to go back into ‘academia’ after being clinical for four years and I think maybe that is something that could put some others off pursuing this path. I would say go for it anyway! The help and support myself and others received was amazing, both from SWITA staff and from each other and made it such an enjoyable and safe environment to study, make mistakes and improve.
Next steps
Even though I am just one radiographer, I like to think I will have some small effect on the plain film reporting backlog at GWH! I am also trying to make sure I can have a positive impact on the other radiographers I work with, supporting those now undertaking the course after me, and hopefully encouraging even more to apply for this and other advanced practice roles in the future. I have also been very lucky to be invited to give a couple of talks for SWITA, which has been another new terrifying but amazing experience for me. It is probably easy to tell I am a big fan of SWITA and think everyone should go!
