“This conference is the most informative one available to radiology personnel.”

I have applied for the Osborn Scholarship in the past, but unfortunately I wasn’t a recipient, as was the case also this year, 2021. However, I received a called from AHRA informing me that another vendor had sponsored scholarships for 5 people and I was chosen as one of those recipients.

Beekley Medical was offering these scholarships for 5 honorees to attend the conference.  I was so honored, grateful, and excited to be able to attend this year.  I gladly accepted and then thought…now I need to be granted the time off to attend. (I’d recently started a new job, with a new title).

I have been in healthcare in the radiology field since 1982.  I started as a Radiologic Technologist, learning angiography and CT; was mammography certified, and then became a Director.  I spent the majority of my career at a small community hospital in northern New York evolving our department from the technology of film-screen, CR and digital. 

In 2015, I left my home-town and beloved job of 31 years and moved to a bigger city where I became the Director of another non-profit community hospital for 5 yrs.  In 2020, I decided to step down and I accepted a position at a university hospital as an Assistant Director of Women’s Imaging, as mammography has always been my passion in the field of Radiology.  I am looking forward to ending my career in the field of women’s health and imaging.

I have been blessed to be able to attend the AHRA conference a few times in my career, and to have my employer cover the expenses. This year, being a new employee, I did not have the privilege of being able to have conferences paid for.

I was a bit nervous with all that was still happening with Covid, but I was so excited to get to attend another AHRA conference again that I put my fear behind me and flew to Nashville!

And of course, there was no disappointment or regret.  I am a CRA, and this conference provides attendees with so much essential and valuable information for radiology professionals that it has always been my hope that every radiology professional can attend at least one time in their career.

This conference is the most informative one available to radiology personnel.  I have never left an AHRA conference feeling nothing less than, “Wow, what am I going to do with all this information? How can I implement that in our department? I can’t wait to share this with my staff, and my other managers at the hospital will sure benefit when I share this information with them!”

Thank you again for choosing me to attend the annual AHRA conference 2021, Nashville, TN!  I am truly grateful and I am honored and proud to be a member of AHRA and our profession.

Debra King, CRA, R.T(R)(M) is the Assistant Director of Women’s Imaging Services at the SUNY Upstate Medical Center  in Syracuse NY, and can be reached at kingde@upstate.edu.