Adele McGrath

What is your current role?

I’m an Enhanced Practitioner, working as a specialist breast radiographer at the Northern Health and Social Care Trust breast imaging and assessment unit. This is a busy department that provides breast screening, symptomatic, family history and oncology services to approximately a quarter of the population of Northern Ireland.

My typical day involves producing accurate, high-quality mammograms in either the hospital or out in a mobile screening van. Both environments can be extremely busy and challenging but are slightly different in terms of the types of patients I see. Symptomatic clinics at the hospital are usually for patients who have been referred through their GP, with a concern regarding their breasts. These are ‘one-stop’ clinics where patients will be clinically examined, undergo imaging, such as mammography or breast ultrasound, and biopsy if needed, all on the same day.

While out on the mobile screening van I usually work with one other breast screening radiographer or assistant practitioner. Patients aged 50–70 who are registered with a GP in Northern Ireland are automatically invited to attend for breast screening every three years, with those over 70 encouraged to contact the unit to make their own appointment. (The age for invitation can vary slightly across the UK). Breast screening is intended to detect breast cancer at a very early stage, mostly before the patient is aware of any problem, to help provide a better long-term outcome. When a potential problem is picked up through screening these patients are invited back to the breast unit in the hospital for further assessment.

What skills and knowledge do you need for your job?

All aspects of my role require a high degree of emotional intelligence, excellent communication, good teamwork and time management skills. As my hospital clinic patients are symptomatic, they can be extremely anxious, so it is important that the team and I provide a caring and compassionate environment for them. At the symptomatic clinic I will undertake mammograms and further additional views (as identified by the radiologist or, in some sites, a reporting radiographer), as well as help set up patients for stereotactic breast biopsies, and/or assist in ultrasound. I will also regularly attend the weekly multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings with the wider breast team, made up of our advanced practitioners, breast radiologists, oncologists, breast care nurses, breast surgeons and pathologists. At these meetings the team will discuss patient results (imaging and histology) from the previous week to determine the best course of action and treatment needed. The mobile screening van is an extremely busy environment that requires multitasking to book in patients and undertake two-view digital mammography in a relatively short appointment.

Quality assurance (QA) is another very important part of mammography due to the need for high-quality images within the discipline. As a member of the QA team, I have to make sure all tests are within tolerances and if not, troubleshoot. Audit is also a big part of our job, as the service and individuals need to know that the whole process is functioning as it should; training and self-assessment form a major part of this. I am also the unit’s autism champion; a role I am passionate about and have personal knowledge of. This involves making the visit to my unit as easy and informative as possible for people with autism so their experience is as relaxed and as pleasant as it should be. Being satisfied in my current role, I have no plans for future progression, but mammography can open a lot of different doors that can lead to advanced and consultant practitioner roles, such as film reading, clinical examination, ultrasound, interventional procedures, health promotion, management, education and training, and research and development.

How did you get into this role?

I completed a BSc Hons degree in radiography at the University of Ulster’s Jordanstown campus. After graduating I worked as a locum for two years, followed by two years in a specialist orthopaedic hospital, before working in my local hospital in general radiography for another two years. I then accepted a band 6 training post at the Northern Health and Social Care Trust’s Breast Imaging and Assessment Unit where I currently work, completing my postgraduate certificate in mammography practice through the University of Derby in 2004. I have worked in this department ever since, developing my skills through annual in-house training, CPD and various other training events. These have helped me to keep my knowledge and skills current and up to date.

Have you had the support you needed to progress?

Because I trained while doing the job, the support was always there, but allocated study time would have been beneficial. Having a mammography course closer to home would have helped with my work–life balance but I’m aware this isn’t always possible. When I was completing my degree, mammography was only briefly mentioned – I think universities have a duty to highlight this area of radiography and give it the recognition it deserves as an interesting and progressive career pathway, and this will help with recruiting the future workforce too.

What do you find most rewarding about your job?

It sounds a cliché, but you are saving lives through early cancer detection. Most screening patients have no symptoms when they come for their three-yearly mammograms and to help them get diagnosed and onto the path to recovery is very rewarding. Also, putting patients at ease at one of the most difficult times in their lives, and seeing them come back every year for their follow-up appointments, makes you realise you are part of a very important service and are making a difference.

What advice would you give anyone interested in a similar career?

Experience general radiography first and then visit a breast unit if it’s not a service they provide in your setting. Get a feel for it and ask loads of questions. Mammography is fast-paced, and it can be both physically and emotionally demanding, but it provides a great work–life balance, with opportunities for growth and progression while working as a member of a team.