“Through small adjustments, mammography consultants can make big improvements to mammography” 

Becoming a mammography consultant and educator has given me a responsibility that I never knew I wanted.

I didn’t know much about what mammography consultants did until I attended a keynote speech by Louise Miller, R.T.(R)(M), co-founder of Mammography Educators, LLC. She shared a story about her triple-negative breast cancer diagnosis and her commitment to helping fellow technologists that inspired me. I could see that her business was improving mammography, and I wanted to be a part of that work. I joined the Mammography Educators team and Louise became my mentor. Through her expertise, I developed my passion for teaching and mammography into a fulfilling career.

FILLING A NEED

Many technologists are trained on the job, which means they learn good and bad positioning habits from co-workers. As a mammography consultant, I serve as an educator, and I pride myself on my ability to work with technologists of all experience levels and to recognize the different ways they learn.

I offer efficient and compassionate feedback by listening to technologists’ concerns, identifying problem areas and offering feasible and effective solutions. In addition to providing standardized positioning training, I teach technologists and radiologists about the recommendations of the Food and Drug Administration’s Enhancing Quality Using the Inspection Program (also known as EQUIP), policy and procedure development, workflow standardization and more.

The goal of these standardized processes is to allow technologists to focus on producing high-quality images and to be able to see incremental improvements in those images. Seeing them achieve that kind of progress is one of the most gratifying aspects of my job.

THE IMPORTANCE OF IMAGING

Not all mammography technologists realize what an incredible responsibility they have. It’s a concept Louise brought to life for me when she said, “Not even the best radiologist in the world can find a breast cancer if the technologist doesn’t include it on the image.”

As a mammography consultant and educator, I help my fellow technologists improve their skills and provide better care for their patients through higher-quality images and a better screening experience. Who wouldn’t love that?

Sarah Jacobs is a mammography consultant for Mammography Educators, LLC. She resides in southern Minnesota and enjoys staying active with her busy family.