Career options without procedures?

[EuanF]

Hello,

I’m an MS3 that’s really enjoyed my radiology exposure thus far. I understand training in diagnostic radiology involves both learning to read imaging on PACS and procedures, and certain sub-specialty paths (ex: abdominal imaging) allow for a variety of procedures in one’s career also, like fluoroscopy.

I would love to know how common it is, after residency/fellowship, to have a non-procedural career? I.e. one involving all the other tasks in DR (interdisciplinary conferences, reading images, etc)?

Thanks very much.

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[deleted950463]

Many DR careers are nonprocedural, teleradiology is always nonprocedural.

 

[Dave1980]

most rads dont do procedures

 

[meister]

Don’t think I’d say “most” don’t. Your average DR in private practice probably at least has to do LPs, paras and thoras. But a good amount of DRs don’t do procedures and you could find a job that doesn’t have you picking up a needle though it would limit you.

 

[Cognovi]

certain sub-specialty paths (ex: abdominal imaging) allow for a variety of procedures in one’s career also, like fluoroscopy.

What do you count as a procedure? Fluoroscopy is noninvasive, unless you count sticking tubes in natural orifices or having to talk to the patient.

To answer your question, it is not uncommon but doesn't seem like a majority of jobs have no procedures. Look at a jobs board like Radiology Jobs - American College of Radiology Career Center, specifically for teleradiology and emergency radiology. Large or academic practices in which the IRs do all the needle work may also exist.

 

[deleted564680]

Some of it depends on your sub-specialty choice (IR > Body > Breast > MSK > Neuro) as far as the total amount of procedures that are expected to be done. That being said, probably only IR and breast are "required" to do procedures if you have done fellowships in them. It's hard to nail down a specific % of rads that do procedures but I would guess 25-30% probably don't do any at all (including no fluoro if you count that - which I don't). The other thing is that a lot of the non-IR procedures are pretty quick and easy to perform so it's not as big of a deal if you truly "hate" procedures.

 

[Zetterberg07]

In my large group, we have tons of rads who do zero procedures. The neuro rads, ER rads and most of the body rads do no procedures.