RN or Radiographer?

[co2017]

Hi all. I've been a long time lurker of these boards, but now i have a question of my own.

What has been your experience as a nurse? Would you recommend becoming a nurse?

I would be going for my ADN if decided to do to nursing. Are ADN nurses being hired? And how long should i expect before i am asked to get my BSN?

What has been your experience as a radiographer? Would you recommend becoming a radiographer? How is the job field for radiographers (specifically in Illinois and Tennessee)?

Yes, I am well aware that there has been previous threads on this topic, however most of those threads are a few years old.

Yes, I am going to shadow a radiographer and a nurse, but i would like other people's opinions as well.

Right now, i am leaning towards radiography, but please share your thoughts!

[CelticGoddess, BSN, RN]

My husband and I are both retired rad techs. My husband was also a CT tech. He was a rad tech for 25 yrs, and I left the field to have children. I'll be honest, I did NOT enjoy it, and I love nursing. I spend more time with my patients, I am able to get to know them a bit more than I did when I was in radiography. Some of my shifts were horrible (as a nurse) but I had moments in x-ray where I wanted to pull my hair out. I'd say both fields have the good and bad points. Shadow a rad tech in a hospital and get a feel for what they do. And shadow a nurse.

By the way: rad techs are now required to take the ARRT registry every 10 years. And they don't make a lot of money. My husbands base pay as a senior tech was the same as mine as an RN with only 3 years experience. Just a couple of things to keep in mind.

ETA: if you want to expand into other rad tech modalities, you'll have to go back to school. (That is for MRI, CT, Nuclear Med). And you'll have to take the registry for that area, every 10 years.

[RNperdiem, RN]

My sister and I work in the same hospital and she is the rad tech and I am the RN.

Education: With an ADN, I probably would never get hired here if I applied today. 20 years ago, it was not a problem. My sister also went to community college for the 2 year degree, but it is not an issue for her. There are fewer spots in the rad tech program compared to nursing, so getting accepted to the program is the biggest challenge.

Schedule: There are a lot of rad techs who work outpatient settings and keep daytime working hours. Sometimes they have to come to take call, and other departments like CT and ER xray work nights, weekends and holidays just like nurses. Nurses are more likely to be working nights and weekends and holidays than rad techs since more nurses are needed.

Jobs: There are more nursing jobs out there.

Scope: Nurses can do more things, which is good and bad. Rad tech has the power to say: "not my job". Being able to draw a clear line about what you are responsible for makes jobs less stressful.