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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

When you have an X Ray....

75 replies

MrsWinnibago · 12/06/2014 21:50

Does the person doing it usually know what's wrong with you? I've got an ankle injury and had an X ray today...saw the GP yesterday and she sent me....

The X Ray person (what are they called??) said "Well I've had a sneaky look at the x ray and I can't see a fracture but I'm not the expert...call the GP's surgery tomorrow....I'll put this on a fast report."

Confused I thought the person doing the x ray was the expert?

OP posts:
BumWad · 12/06/2014 22:48

Until the patient starts telling you it's the 'other' side eh Doinmummy Wink

Doinmummy · 12/06/2014 22:51

If I had a penny for every time I hear that.......

Also when doing a pelvis, I always get asked ' aren't you going to do the other hip as well?'

It also makes me grit my teeth when I'm asked 'can I have it in colour' or 'shall I smile?'

mrscumberbatch · 12/06/2014 22:53

I love the sound the X-ray machine makes. The beeps make it sound like a very cute, happy robot!

disclaimer high as a kite on painkillers

Poppiesway · 13/06/2014 00:19

Bumwad.. Some of us reporting Radiographers look at other scans too not just X-rays :)

And if someone calls me nurse.. Then wonder why I don't respond..
Grrrr

You must love your job looking at babies all day long... Well it's no we don't scan babies all day long..(thankfully) it's not all about babies..and pregnancy scans are the worst type to do.. Pregnant women are soooooo demanding. Grrrrr

weebarra · 13/06/2014 00:37

I know this is therapeutic rather than diagnostic, but I'm currently having. 15 fractions of radiotherapy. Chest wall, lymphs, supraclavicle. The radiographers are great, compassionate but very efficient and professional. And good at maths.

Doinmummy · 13/06/2014 00:43

Hope your therapy goes well Weebarra

I have to say that us radiographers both diagnostic and therapeutic are a brainy bunch Grin

HowsTheSerenity · 13/06/2014 00:54

I'd trust the radiographer over a GP. They take and see scans every single day.

Doinmummy · 13/06/2014 00:56

The GP's in our area don't get to see the X-rays , they just read the report out to the patient

Lucked · 13/06/2014 01:07

Bumwad radiologists ARE experts in reading plain films!! There are more than enough to go around for reporting radiographer and radiologists.

Nocomet · 13/06/2014 01:13

Both times DD broke her wrist she could diagnose herself, age 7 and 8.

She likes to snap things nice and obviously.

Unfortunately, Doing, she doesn't like radiographers. One elderly male in was really rough, wouldn't wait for her to move her arm in to position herself and made her cry. Only time in the whole time she did. She knew it was broken, she'd been holding it carefully all morning.

The other one took wrong angle and we had to queue again.

gingee · 13/06/2014 01:14

So i had an X-ray on Tuesday, referred by the GP to drop-in x-ray clinic,the very nice woman doing the x-ray said it normally takes 5 working days to get to GP and the GP will then call me. Am I right in thinking its probably not shown anything up on the x-ray worth worrying about or could it literally show anything (including a fracture) but they wouldn't look just send to your GP??

Doinmummy · 13/06/2014 01:18

Generally if it's a GP referral and we see something on the image we would send you to A&E. So if you've been sent home then I would assume there's nothing major wrong.

I normally get a radiologist to have a quick look at any images for a patient with ? Fracture that's been sent in by their GP if I'm not sure- just to cover myself.

HicDraconis · 13/06/2014 04:28

There is a treatment for fractured ribs - we plate them. If I referred a patient for a chest xray ?rib fractures and the radiographer refused to do it through lack of clinical justification I'd be fuming. I'd also be looking for a pneumothorax with the fractures which would quite possibly require draining. I'd expect at the least a phone call to query the request before it gets refused out of hand.

That said our radiographers are a fabulous bunch who have always bent over backwards to be helpful, lovely and generally amazing.

parentalunit · 13/06/2014 06:58

It's normal for the radiologist not to be qualified to interpret X-rays, but good that he checked. Sometimes they pick up on things that others miss.

FanFuckingTastic · 13/06/2014 07:28

If you have been given an xray and told it's not broken, and twelve weeks later you are still in pain, should you have another xray then, if some don't show up immediately? I can't walk without a stick right now, and if I move my foot in a certain way, it's white hot pain sort of levels.

Doinmummy · 13/06/2014 07:56

parent radiologists are consultants who are very much trained to interpret X-rays

Doinmummy · 13/06/2014 07:58

fan sometimes but not always- could be a soft tissue injury that won't show on xray

Doinmummy · 13/06/2014 08:01

Our trusts protocol is not to xray for rib # - we would do it if suspected pneumothorax though- I check with a radiologist just to cover myself.

We don't plate them either.

musicalendorphins2 · 13/06/2014 08:05

Fan I would go back to the doctor if I were you. I had a fractured vertebra in my neck one doctor missed. Also, some places do poor x-rays, my son's rhuematologist has a preferred x-ray place he sends his patients too. Even if your foot has no break, you may need an air cast/boot until you're healed.

Doinmummy · 13/06/2014 08:06

We get so many poor /vague/inadequate requests from GP's it takes ages sometimes to find out what they are really asking for . I've been asked to xray for rib# by GP's when the patient tells me there has been no injury and the doc hasn't even listened to their chest.

We've found recently that some GP 'a have only spoken to the patient over the phone!

FanFuckingTastic · 13/06/2014 09:32

GP told me to self refer to physiotherapy. I guess they'll have a better idea of the injury and tell me if I need further scans. It just hurts so much and after twelve weeks there's no improvement at all.

Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 13/06/2014 10:00

I just rang up for the results as told to by the radiographer and the receptionist said "Oh you won't hear till Monday....they ALWAYS tell people to call the next day and I can ASSURE you that you'll not hear anything till MOnday."

Hmm
OP posts:
sashh · 13/06/2014 10:20

and pregnancy scans are the worst type to do.. Pregnant women are soooooo demanding. Grrrrr

But you don't get many ribs and lungs in the way like you do with an echo.

Morethanalittlebitconfused · 13/06/2014 10:24

I had a head CT recently and the radiologist said that I may be called back for a test with dye?? But I was then discharged from hospital with the all clear by the neurologist leaving me confused

FairPhyllis · 13/06/2014 10:30

Mind you doctors aren't always the best at interpreting X-rays - a doc in A&E once missed a finger fracture I had and sent me home. Got a phone call from a consultant later saying actually I've just seen your X-ray and you need to come back in.