News Story

Running the Numbers
Florida Hospital College Offers Radiography Program Online
FDA Approved: Use of New Bone Density Technology Given FDA OK

Florida Hospital College Offers Radiography Program Online

Florida Hospital College of Health Sciences (FHCHS of Orlando, Fla) has been offering a bachelor’s of science in radiological sciences (BSRS) degree online since 2001. In just 5 years, the program has grown from an initial group of 17 students to 638 students all across the United States. Student retention for the 2-year program is 90%, and a higher percentage of BSRS students attend graduation than on-campus students, according to Don Williams, FHCHS senior vice president for academic administration.

“They want to meet the teachers and their fellow students,” Williams says. “They really build a relationship and a sense of belonging, even though they’ve never seen the other people. I think there’s a great desire to meet that student they’ve connected with, meet that faculty member who they’ve never seen.”

Part of the sense of community engendered by FHCHS’ program comes from its support system, which incorporates both core on-campus faculty and professional facilitators across the country. “We find facilitators both locally and through networking around the country,” Williams explains. “We have facilitators out in the Northwest, we have some in California; we have them all around the country. We actually look for facilitators in different time zones.”

Adding to the sense of intimacy is the program’s structure. “It’s different from some online programs,” Williams says. “We do have a synchronous program; it’s not an independent study where you just do it at your own pace. We have it set up so that you take one course at a time in a 5-week intensive. We really have it planned out so that you’d be able to complete the program in 2 years, but in order to do that, you need to stay on track.”

Adds Genese Gibson, MA, RT, (R)(M)(QM), chair of the department of radiologic sciences at FHCHS, “The course work is vigorous. Within this given framework, students are still required to take exams, submit writing assignments, do research papers, and participate in group projects.”

Because students are on a set track, they can be divided into groups, or “cohorts,” of 15, each of which is assigned its own facilitator. “Facilitators do a weekly chat with the students,” Williams says. “They work with students in grading assignments. They answer questions, and they can e-mail if a student needs help.”

Facilitators also keep the program up to date, helping students stay on top of emerging technology. “They are practitioners out in the field,” Williams notes. “Since they’re all working professionals, the exchange is very fresh.” Courses on trends also are built into the curriculum.

FHCHS maintains that online learning is a vital link to the future for today’s radiologic professionals. “With changes in technology, the role of the radiographer also changed, and more positions have opened that require a BS degree,” Gibson says. “When we considered adding a BS degree for radiographers, the e-learning environment was new to the College; however, we knew that the working technologist needed alternatives to a traditional classroom-based education.”

But it isn’t a perfect fit for everyone. “Online learning takes dedication, self-discipline, and a drive to succeed. Some students are surprised that they cannot manage the course workload or manage their time effectively without the constant face-to-face interaction of the traditional classroom,” Gibson says.

The total program cost is $14,765, plus books, which are estimated at $200 to $400 per semester. Also, a $135 matriculation fee is due each semester. For more information, visit onlineradiology.fhchs.edu.

—C. Vasko

FDA Approved: Use of New Bone Density Technology Given FDA OK

Thomas J. Beck, ScD

The FDA recently granted 510(k) marketing clearance to Hologic Inc (Bedford, Mass), which allows the company to incorporate new bone health analysis software into its dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) bone densitometers. The software was developed by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL of Laurel, Md), which signed a research agreement with Hologic in February.

Mechanical strength cannot be measured directly by DXA scans, but conventional DXA images of the geometric properties of bone now can be used to determine strength. The new technology is called Hip Structure Analysis (HSA) and will be useful in determining whether bones have weakened, thereby needing treatment, or have gained in strength.

“HSA algorithms allow us to calculate both the bone mineral density as well as the structural geometry that underlies bone strength from DXA measurements,” said Thomas J. Beck, ScD, associate professor of radiology at Johns Hopkins, in a press release. “The use of HSA should result in more definitive measures of bone strength.”

Mineral profiles for three femur cross-sections are extracted from Discovery DXA images using proprietary HSA software and are analyzed.

Beck compared the software to an engineer’s measurement of bridge strength: Although the density of a bridge’s supports are a major contributor to safety, those measurements alone are not enough to determine whether the bridge is safe enough for use. The stresses of a bridge or a bone under a particular load are determined primarily by both the amount of material and its distribution within the overall structure.

The development of HSA is an outgrowth of the APL’s work on the advanced multiple-projection DXA, which aims to develop, build, and test a 3D scanner system to monitor the effects of zero-gravity spaceflight conditions on the musculoskeletal system.

HSA initially will be used primarily for research; in studies, the technology could help researchers understand how the femur weakens with age and how pharmaceutical treatments can reduce hip-fracture risk.

—C. Vasko