Education & Workforce Development
Quinnipiac University - Masters Level RA Program
Partners Healthcare Systems, Inc. was approached in 2008 by Quinnipiac University of Connecticut to engage in a collaborative effort to educate new Radiologist Assistants in a Masters level program. Quinnipiac has developed a curriculum to closely align with the standards set forth by the ARRT, in conjunction with the ACR.
The affiliation will require that a radiologist preceptor at each clinical site oversee the education of the student(s) while they are attending the clinical site, as outlined in the contract between Quinnipiac and each facility.
By working with the university in this endeavor, Partners Healthcare will continue their efforts to promote education and the development of advanced level practitioners in imaging. The collaboration between Partners and Quinnipiac allows both organizations to shape the development of these advanced practitioners, and gives the Partners organization the ability to have the pick of the best and brightest in the field.
Partners Healthcare prides itself on being a leader in the education of healthcare personnel. This role is expanding at a rapid pace, and by not aligning ourselves with leaders in education such as Quinnipiac, we lose the opportunity to help shape the role and future employees.
The desired outcome of this collaboration is to aid in the development of future graduates of the Quinnipiac Masters level Radiologist Assistant program, and possibly future Masters level programs at other universities.
The benefit of this outcome is to continue our role as leading educators in the healthcare field, and to have access to a well educated field of Radiologist Assistants.
Partners Healthcare is a leader in the education of healthcare workers, and this collaboration fits in well with that history.
For the program beginning in 2009, MGH is the only facility able to accommodate students in this program. It is expected that BWH will join at a later date. NWH and NSMC have agreed to allow some observational visits by the students. We will revisit the ability of the other sites to accept students and be involved with the program at a later date.
Background information:
Both academic medical centers (BWH/MGH) have been interested in the role of the Radiologist Assistant/Radiology Practitioner Assistant for some time, however, legislative, reimbursement and other issues have slowed the progress of hiring these individuals into the role for which they are trained.
Two of the community hospitals (NSMC/NWH) have hired individuals with RPA/RRA credentials to perform advanced procedures, although they are still employed as Senior Level Radiologic Technologists.
Partners Radiology has been working with a committee consisting of RPA/RRAs, managers, and physicians to stay on top of the issues surrounding this role. We have developed a statement of support, a general job description, and a memorandum from our OGC outlining where the legislation currently stands with regard to the role. These documents can be found on our website at www.partnersradiology.org.