Eswatini Government, Ministry of Health, Manzini Government Hospital, Manzini, Eswatini.
Medical Imaging and Therapeutic Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa.
J Med Imaging Radiat Sci. 2023 Jun;54(2):257-264. doi: 10.1016/j.jmir.2023.01.001. Epub 2023 Mar 7.
Diagnostic radiographers play a vital role in healthcare so it is important for senior management to understand radiographer's duties and work experiences. There has been a number of studies conducted on the experiences of radiographers in other countries like the United Kingdom and South Africa. From these studies a number of work place challenges were identified. In the Eswatini healthcare context, there has been no research conducted on the daily experiences of diagnostic radiographers working in Eswatini. The country's leadership aims to attain its Vision 2022 which focusses on the attainment of the millennium development goals. This vision affects all healthcare professions so for it to be successful, it is imperative to understand what it means to be a diagnostic radiographer working in the country of Eswatini. This paper aims to address this gap in literature.
The aim of this paper is to explore and describe the lived experiences of Eswatini diagnostic radiographers working in the public health sector.
A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and phenomenological design was utilised. Participants were purposively sampled within the public health sector. Diagnostic radiographers participated voluntarily and willingly consented to participate in focus group interviews (n = 18).
A challenging work environment emerged as a principal theme from the participants narratives with 6 sub-themes namely: Lack of resources and consumables, Shortage of radiographers, Absence of radiologists, Lack of proper radiation monitoring and safety, Poor remuneration, Stagnant professional growth.
The findings of this study provided new insights into what Eswatini radiographers are experiencing in the public health sector. It is evident that there are a number of challenges which need to be addressed by the Eswatini management in order to successfully implement Vision 2022. Based on this study, there is the potential for a future study on the development of a professional identity for radiographers in Eswatini.
诊断放射技师在医疗保健中发挥着至关重要的作用，因此，高层管理人员了解放射技师的职责和工作经验非常重要。已经有许多针对英国和南非等其他国家放射技师经验的研究。从这些研究中，确定了一些工作场所的挑战。在斯威士兰的医疗保健背景下，还没有研究过在斯威士兰工作的诊断放射技师的日常经验。该国领导层旨在实现其 2022 年愿景，该愿景侧重于实现千年发展目标。这一愿景影响到所有医疗保健专业人员，因此，为了取得成功，了解在斯威士兰作为一名诊断放射技师意味着什么是至关重要的。本文旨在填补这一文献空白。
本文旨在探讨和描述在斯威士兰公共卫生部门工作的诊断放射技师的生活经历。
采用定性、探索性、描述性和现象学设计。在公共卫生部门内有目的地对参与者进行抽样。诊断放射技师自愿参加焦点小组访谈（n=18）。
参与者的叙述中出现了一个充满挑战的工作环境作为主要主题，并有 6 个副标题：缺乏资源和消耗品、放射技师短缺、没有放射科医生、缺乏适当的辐射监测和安全措施、薪酬低、职业发展停滞不前。
这项研究的结果提供了斯威士兰放射技师在公共卫生部门所经历的新见解。显然，需要斯威士兰管理层解决许多挑战，以便成功实施 2022 年愿景。基于这项研究，有可能对斯威士兰放射技师的专业身份发展进行未来研究。
