I would like to thank the Executive Board and the MSRT membership for awarding me
Oliver E. Merrill Award. I am both honored and humbled.

RADIOLOGY: “My 50 Years on the Road”
In 1958, I would guess that about 60% of you here today were not even
born…Now that makes me feel a little OLD!
Let me share with you a little bit of my past. I joined the M.S.R.T. as a student,
and had the best of intentions to make radiology my “life-long” career. I knew that I
would need to “DREAM BIG” and set my goals even higher than what I could possibly
imagine. The technological advances of today in this field were not available then. My
dreams of accomplishment and proficiency were limited to what radiology was in the
early 1960’s!

EDUCATION- (1958 – 1960)
In 1958, I graduated from Lexington Christian Academy. I then attended the
Lynnfield Union Hospital A.R.R.T. approved School of Radiology, in conjunction with
Northeastern University to obtain my Certification for Registry. The program consisted
of a year at the hospital and university, followed by a year-long internship at the Hospital.
I then took my R.T. Exam and joined the American Society at this time.
In the 1950’s and early 1960’s, I was aware of only Certificate, not Degree based
programs. Most of these radiology programs were “hospital based” like that which I
attended at Lynnfield Union Hospital.

“The Rotation to Mass. General Hospital”
Although there was little in the way of “Special Procedures”, this opportunity
eliminated the once everyday routine of Barium Studies, including B.E.’s, Barium
Swallows, and U.G.I.’s with S.B. follow through and the occasional I.V.P.
Mass. General had Automatic Processors. I spent two weeks between the Angio
Suites, Picker Suite and had the opportunity to observe “pneumoencephalogram” in
Neuroradiology, (that chair that turned the patient almost completely upside down). I
learned to perform other procedures and exams such as Myelograms and tomograms, pre-
C.T.
After only a few weeks in radiation therapy, I was fully trained to perform
radiation treatments. By now, you are probably wondering: “What about the other
Modalities- CT’s, Nuclear Medicine, M.R.I., and P.E.T.’s?” NONEXISTENT YET! As
you can see, radiology truly had little to offer then…

“The Dark Ages”
The early 1960’s were known as the Dark Ages of Radiology because you had to
develop your own films in a “dark room”. YES, I said hand develop! First you would
unload your film from cassettes. Next, you would flash the ID on the film from flash
cards and hang them on hangers. Thirdly, you dipped them into tanks filled with
developer, water, stop wash, and fixer. Lastly, the film would be left to dry.
In those days, the films were also marked with Lead Numbers and Letters. There
was no Bar Coding of films to identify the patient’s film. I remember going through
many lead markers back then.
Next, off to the file room to retrieve old films to take to reading room, where the
radiologist would compare the older films with the new ones.

“Fluoroscopy”
The fluoroscopy exams were done in darkened rooms. Red glasses were worn to
adjust your eyes to the giant florescent screens, which would flip down over the patient.
All the cassettes were placed into the carriage or film holder and the doctor would take
the exposure. The technologist’s job was to change out the exposed film to clean
cassettes, making sure never to mix them.
The cassettes used to take “overheads” were extremely heavy! They were made of
metal with spring loaded brackets on the back causing many blistered and cut fingertips
during the unloading process. Band-Aids were always on hand!
Upkeep and cleaning of screens was also required of by the x-ray technologist
then. So much time was spent doing other tasks in lieu of taking exposures.

“The O.R. at Mass General Hospital”
Here I would see real operations- not just a cysto or coloangiogram. In my
rotation, I was able to experience the reattachment of a severed arm to a young boy…
what an accomplishment that was! Time meant nothing that day; we all stayed until the
exhaustive procedure was completed. It was then that I knew that I had ARRIVED!
That day changed me: It was the O.R. for me! Someday, I told myself, I would return to
work the O.R. and Emergency XRAY.

“AS THE YEARS PASSED”
After graduation I worked in Health Centers and very small departments in
facilities such as Brusch Medical Center and Winchester Hospital. I participated in
several field-related research projects. Over the next eight years, I married and had four
children and therefore was limited to working mostly part-time. My first job paid only
about $100.00 per week. Minimum wage was $1.30, and gas was .36.
In 1968, I returned to Mass General Hospital to work in Emergency Radiology
and the O.R. I made about $5.00 an hour. Was I better off then or now?
It was important to make time to be involved in my professional organizations. I
was able to contribute in many different ways. In the early 1980’s, much time was spent
on the licensure bill in Mass. The trips to the state house with Dave Sack and fellow
techs. Now the continuing education was necessary.

My hobby was video production. I used to produce educational in-service
videotapes for MSRT all with CEU’s, leading me to become the video librarian from
1985 to 1987. I served as the Ways and Means Committee Chair, Scholarship Chair,
and the President and Vice President of the Boston District.
The late Florence Wakefield and I co-founded the Quarter Century Club, whose mission
is to recognize professional longevity and promote participation of newer members in
the M.S R.T. Each year, we award two students with scholarships.

Today, the Quarter Century Club serves as a vehicle to give back to the community. As
an aside, Florence was my mentor and I hope that those who have worked with me will
feel the same warm appreciation I have for her and her dedication to our society. My two
lovely daughters, Eleanor Slye, RTR and Sandra Doherty, RTR (M) (QM) have chosen to
follow in my footsteps in their career paths.

More recently I continue to strive for my professions goals. My daughter Eleanor
and I traveled to Washington to support our society’s representatives to promote the
passage of the CARE Bill which remains on capital hill in committee.
Over the next 35 years, I saw many changes take place in the technical field. The
advances in the technical world have yet to stop, from the chest film to open heart postop
films, C-Arm to Digital Radiology, from balloon adapted cones for mammograms to
filmless digital studies. I never dreamed that Radiology would have all of the modalities
that answered so many questions. Now as a retired technologist, I often wonder where
our profession will go next.

YOUR TURN
Where will your dreams take you? Will you become a vital part of this society?
Will you move on to other modalities or perhaps teach others who desire to enter this
field…
DO YOU DARE TO DREAM BIG????