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Expanding radiologic technologist aide roles to sustain interventional radiology services during technologist
Julie Mucciarone1, Melissa Chittle1, Raul N Uppot2
1Department of Interventional Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Objective:
To evaluate the impact of expanding radiologic technologist aide responsibilities on procedural access in the interventional radiology (IR) department of a large academic medical center during radiologic technologist shortages.
Methods:
This quality improvement initiative was conducted in IR between October 1, 2024, and September 30, 2025, following closure of a fluoroscopic procedure room due to radiologic technologist shortages. Radiologic technologist aides were trained in sterile technique and ultrasound setup to assist with bedside and non-fluoroscopic procedures performed under Advanced Practice Provider (APP) or physician supervision. Procedural data were collected retrospectively and filtered to isolate cases performed in one of our IR suites or bedside. Outcomes included case volume, radiologic technologist aide involvement, and safety.
Results:
Of 16,841 IR procedures, 1,048 were included, and radiologic technologist aides participated in 205 cases (19.6 %). Radiologic technologist aide involvement was most frequent in ultrasound-guided procedures (147/205, 71.7 %), followed by non-image-guided (37/205, 18.0 %) and fluoroscopic cases (21/205, 10.2 %), the latter always with technologist pairing. Among APP-led cases, radiologic technologist aides most commonly supported ultrasound-guided drainage procedures (69/115, 60 %) and non-image-guided tunneled catheter or port removals (34/115, 29.6 %). Among physician-led cases, radiologic technologist aides most frequently supported ultrasound-guided venous ablation/sclerotherapy (53/90, 58.9 %) and drainage procedures (20/90, 22.2 %). No radiologic technologist aide attributable complications occurred.
Discussion/Conclusion:
Expanding radiologic technologist aide responsibilities supported IR services in a procedure room and bedside setting during radiologic technologist shortages. Training radiologic technologist aides to assist with sterile preparation and ultrasound-guided workflows helped preserve procedural access to care.
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