Nuclear Medicine Technologists

ANZSCO ID 251213

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
710
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
76%
Female Share
68%
Average age
34

Summary

Nuclear Medicine Technologists perform or assist in performing diagnostic examinations using radionuclides and radiopharmaceuticals, and administer radionuclides and radiopharmaceuticals for therapeutic purposes under the direction of Specialist Medical Practitioners.

Tasks

  • Receives referrals to perform medical imaging and radiation treatment.

  • Determines equipment and selects settings to provide the information requested by medical practitioners.

  • Calculates details of procedures such as length and intensity of exposure to radiation, size and strength of dosage of isotopes and settings of recording equipment.

  • Explains procedures to patients and answers queries about processes.

  • Ensures patient's welfare during procedures.

  • Positions patients, screens and equipment preparatory to procedures.

  • Decides if images are satisfactory for diagnostic purposes and selects images to show medical practitioners.

  • Conveys findings of procedures to medical practitioners.

Characteristics

Job Type
Professionals
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
Unemployment Rate
n/a
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
Interests
  • Practical
  • Analytical
  • Helping
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary
  • Light
  • Medium

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. Employment projections data are only produced for occupations at the broad four digit Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) level. While data are not available for this occupation, projections data are available for the parent occupation, Medical Imaging Professionals, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 76% of people employed as Nuclear Medicine Technologists work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 10 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 41 hours per week in their main job. This is similar to the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    Sources:Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average.


Industries

Main industries

1
Health Care and Social Assistance
97.9%
2
Public Administration and Safety
1.1%
3
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
0.6%
4
Education and Training
0.4%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

36.8% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

29.8% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

16.9% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

5.4% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

6.9% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.6% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.0% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

2.7% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Nuclear Medicine Technologists All Jobs Average
NSW 36.8 31.6
VIC 29.8 25.6
QLD 16.9 20.0
SA 5.4 7.0
WA 6.9 10.8
TAS 1.6 2.0
NT 0.0 1.0
ACT 2.7 1.9


  • Around 71% of Nuclear Medicine Technologists live in capital cities, compared with the all jobs average of 62%.

    New South Wales and Victoria have a large share of employment relative to their population size.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Share of workers across Australian states, territories and regions, in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
34
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
68%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Nuclear Medicine Technologists is 34 years. This is younger than the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 25 to 34 years.

    Females make up 68% of the workforce. This is 20 percentage points above the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Nuclear Medicine Technologists All Jobs Average
15-19 0.0 5.0
20-24 10.8 9.3
25-34 42.6 22.9
35-44 27.7 22.0
45-54 10.5 21.6
55-59 5.0 9.0
60-64 2.8 6.0
65 and Over 0.6 4.2
Median Age 34 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in nuclear medicine is needed to work as a Nuclear Medicine Technologist. Some workers have a postgraduate qualification.

Registration with the Medical Radiation Practice Board of Australia is required.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Nuclear Medicine Technologists All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 13.2 10.1
Bachelor degree 80.1 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 5.6 11.6
Certificate III/IV 0.0 21.1
Year 12 1.2 18.1
Year 11 0.0 4.8
Year 10 and below 0.0 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Medical Imaging Professionals who are caring and empathetic and can work well in a team, with the ability to communicate with a diverse range of people.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 57%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 54%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 54%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 52%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 52%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 50%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 50%

    Science

    Using scientific rules and methods to solve problems.

  • 48%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 48%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 46%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 46%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 45%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 45%

    Quality control analysis

    Doing tests and checking products, services, or processes to make sure they are working properly.

  • 43%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 43%

    Learning strategies

    Figuring out the best way to teach or learn something new.

  • 43%

    Mathematics

    Using maths to solve problems.

  • 43%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

  • 41%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 41%

    Operation monitoring

    Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

  • 39%

    Operation and control

    Controlling equipment or systems.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 79%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 61%

    Biology

    Plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, how they rely on and work with each other and the environment.

  • 60%

    Chemistry

    Chemical composition, structure, and properties. How chemicals are made, used, mixed, and can change.

  • 59%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 58%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 55%

    Physics

    The physical laws of matter, motion and energy, and how they interact through space and time.

  • 55%

    Medicine and dentistry

    Diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities, including preventive health-care measures.

  • 54%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 52%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 51%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 50%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 46%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.

  • 37%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 33%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 32%

    Engineering and technology

    Use engineering, science and technology to design and produce goods and services.

  • 29%

    Production and processing

    Raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and ways of making and distributing goods.

  • 26%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 26%

    Sociology and anthropology

    Group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

  • 22%

    Mechanical

    Machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

  • 22%

    Telecommunications

    Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 61%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 59%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 55%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 55%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 54%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 54%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 52%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 50%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 50%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 48%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 46%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 43%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 43%

    Arm-hand steadiness

    Keep your hand or arm steady.

  • 43%

    Colour discrimination

    Notice differences between colours, including shades of colour and brightness.

  • 43%

    Control precision

    Quickly change the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

  • 43%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 43%

    Mathematics

    Choose the right maths method or formula to solve a problem.

  • 43%

    Perceptual speed

    Use your eyes to quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

  • 43%

    Working with numbers

    Add, subtract, multiply, or divide.

  • 41%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 77%

    Helping and caring for others

    Providing personal assistance, medical attention, or emotional support.

  • 74%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 71%

    Monitoring people, processes and things

    Checking objects, actions, or events, and keeping an eye out for problems.

  • 66%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 65%

    Handling and moving objects

    Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, moving and manipulating objects.

  • 65%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 65%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 61%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 61%

    Checking compliance with standards

    Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

  • 61%

    Controlling equipment or machines

    Operating machines or processes either directly or using controls (not including computers or vehicles).

  • 60%

    Checking for errors or defects

    Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials for errors, problems or defects.

  • 59%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 59%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 57%

    Documenting or recording information

    Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.

  • 56%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 56%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

  • 55%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 54%

    Coordinating the work of a team

    Getting members of a group to work together to finish a task.

  • 47%

    Doing physically active work

    Use your arms, legs and whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling objects.

  • 46%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 90%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 86%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

  • 57%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 52%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 24%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 19%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 90%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 81%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.

  • 76%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 76%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

  • 71%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 62%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 100%

    Radiation

    Be exposed to radiation.

  • 97%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 96%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 94%

    Disease or infection

    Be exposed to disease or infections.

  • 93%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 93%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 93%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 89%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 89%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 88%

    Physically close to people

    Work physically close to other people.

  • 88%

    Consequence of error

    Work where mistakes have serious consequences.

  • 87%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 87%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 86%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 85%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 82%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 81%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 79%

    Using your hands to handle, control, or feel

    Spend time using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls.

  • 78%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 77%

    Competition

    Compete with others, or be aware of competitive pressures.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 29-2033.00 - Nuclear Medicine Technologists.


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