Radiology certificate for RN

[nikashon]

Hi,

I read every thing about certification process on ARIN site and here on all nurses. My question if somebody can share their frash experience of certification process. All that I found here it is stories from 3 and more yers ago. I would like to here something recent.

Please let me know what kind of questions you had, what preperation: books, courses, sites ?

Also what the good sources for CEUs do you use for IR specific requirements.

Thanks

[woodsyny, MSN]

Hi, just saw your post. I got my radiology certification last year. it was not an easy test and all over the place as you have all differant modalities. Nuclear med,cat scan,mri,radiation oncology,cardiac cath etc. I bought the review book from ARIN to study and also went to the differant departments I was not familiar with and asked questions. My department also had the disc from the review class that I used.

I can honestly say some of the review stuff was helpful,some of not. Things you would expect to be on there,like contrast reactions,medications etc were not. I could not even tell you what to study for as again it was all over the place. I can out very defeated after the test but passed. Passing I believe is 70.

I think you have to have 30 credits in radiology stuff. i got some from PearlsReview | Nursing Certification Test Preparation Courses ans stuff from my hospitals online ceu site. I wish you luck. Let me know if I can help in any other way!

[nikashon]

Woodsyny,

Thank you for your answer. Did you find the CD from review class helpful ? I'm considering to take a preparation class, it is kind of expensive so I still didn't decided. How long time in advance did you started your preparation ?

[woodsyny, MSN]

I started studying 6 months ahead. Do not pay for a review class. get the book and go over it from head to toe. I might still have the disc from the review class. If I can find it it is yours. Go to the departments, ask questions etc. know isotopes for nuclear med, like I131,and the rest. I believe the test was 200 question and not on a computer. It was fill in the dot. I don't know what your work entails or where you work but if not familiar with a department ask to shadow for a day.

[nikashon]

To Woodsyny,

I work in IR and have a cath lab experience, what area do you work ? Let me know if you will find your CD, thank you ahead of time. Did the test was a multiple answer questions or a different standard ?

[woodsyny, MSN]

I work in IR also,cat scan,MRI,Nuclear medicine etc. The test was multiple choice. I will see what the heck i did with the CD and let you know!

[rainesalot]

So I have about 5 yrs of medical experience (military medic, experience in ICU, ACC, EMT, and patient admin). I'm thinking (strongly) about getting out and going to school to become a nurse. I'm definitely looking into radiology, nuclear medicine to be exact. Am I better off becoming a tech or going the nursing route due to the ample opportunities to grow?

Also what would my job intel as a radiology nurse? (I Preferably would like to hear from someone with actual experience)

[woodsyny, MSN]

I would go the nursing route and not the tech. radiology nurses at our facility do angiograms,kyphoplasty's,biopsys,cat scans,mri's nuclear med procedures, mediports,pic lines,you name it, we do it! We have recently started doing Y90"s which is for cancer patients that have mets to the liver with good success rates

[Swellz]

May I ask what state this is in? I'm graduating with a BSN from a school in PA and from what I hear, nurses in my state have less autonomy than in other states (or at least NJ), whether they are staff nurses or NPs. I can't compare as I've only ever had clinicals in PA. I'm working on a med/surg floor right now as an extern, but we take all the tele onco patients, which piqued my interest in radiology.