Clinical Obligations

The major goal of the clinical portion of our program is to enable students to develop skills that will allow them to successfully perform the duties of a Diagnostic Medical Sonographer.

After orientation, each student spends 3 days a week in the clinical setting. Students rotate on a regular basis through general, breast, pediatric, gynecologic, and obstetric sonography departments. Students must be able to fulfill the physical duties of a Diagnostic Medical Sonographer (see Technical Standards below).

Students must dress in the approved uniform attire during classes and clinical rotations.

Clinical hours vary depending on the assigned rotation. In addition to clinical assignments at Grady, students also rotate to multiple affiliate hospitals and clinics in the metro Atlanta area.  Students must rotate through all of the JRC-DMS approved clinical sites.  Clinical rotation sites are subject to change.

Clinical Sites

Travel distances from Grady Memorial Hospital to clinical sites:

• Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Hughes Spalding – 35 Jesse Hill Jr Drive, SE, Atlanta, GA 30303 – one block from Grady Memorial Hospital
• Emory Perinatal Center – 2675 North Decatur Road, Suite 408, Decatur, GA 30033 – 8 miles
• Emory University Hospital Midtown – 550 Peachtree Street, NE, Atlanta, GA 30308 – 1.5 miles
• Emory University Hospital – 1364 Clifton Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30322 – 5.9 miles
• Emory University Hospital – Outpatient Clinic (The Emory Clinic) – 1365 Clifton Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30322 – 5.9 miles
• Grady Memorial Hospital – Inpatient, Outpatient, Correll Pavilion & Breast Center – 80 Jesse Hill Jr. Dr. SE – 0 miles
• Grady Memorial Hospital – Perinatal Center – 80 Jesse Hill Jr. Dr. SE – 0 miles
• Kaiser Permanente-Southwood – 2400 Mt Zion Pkwy, Jonesboro, GA 30236 – 17.4 miles
• Northside Hospital – 1000 Johnson Ferry Rd. Atlanta, GA 30342 – 13.0 miles
• Northside Hospital – Maternal Fetal Medicine – 980 Johnson Ferry Rd. Atlanta, GA 30342 – 13.0 miles
• Piedmont Hospital Atlanta – 1968 Peachtree Road NW, Atlanta, GA 30309 – 5.8 miles
• Piedmont Hospital Henry – 1133 Eagles Landing Pkwy, Stockbridge, GA, 30281 – 23.3 miles

Clinical Requirements

 Students are required to have up-to-date immunizations and vaccinations at all times in the program in order to attend clinical rotations.  All students accepted in the Schools of Radiation and Imaging Technologies are required by Grady Health System (GHS) to undergo a criminal background check and drug screen test prior to enrollment in the program. This procedure is conducted after a student has been provisionally accepted into the program. Students are responsible for all charges incurred for these screenings.

 Upon acceptance, the following must be submitted before beginning the program:

1. Physical examination and immunizations to include documentation of:

1. 1. COVID-19 vaccine
   2. MMRvaccine OR Titer (Measles, Mumps, Rubella) Must have one of the following: Documentation of 2 doses after 1^st birthday and separated by at least 28 days OR Laboratory evidence of immunity by positive measles titer, positive mumps titer, and positive rubella titer
   3. Tdapvaccine (tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis) must have booster within past 10 years.
   4. Hepatitis B Vaccine AND Titer (series of 3 vaccines and positive titer results drawn after 3^rddose).  If titer results are negative, then additional vaccine(s) are administered and a titer is drawn again.
   5. Varicella vaccine (2 doses) ORpositive titer
   6. TB screening using Quantiferon Gold blood test.  This is done by Grady’s Employee Health Onboarding personnel. The second Quantiferon Gold blood test must be paid for out of pocket by the student before the end of the first year.
      For history of positive TB test, latent TB infection or TB disease, must have negative chest x-ray. If student has had TB disease, medical evaluation and documentation that student has been treated for TB disease is required. After initial TB testing is completed, student must receive follow-up TB testing annually consisting of a T.SPOT or a Quantiferon Gold Test at the student’s own expense.
   7. Flu vaccine – required yearly

Immunization requirements are subject to change by Grady Health System and/or Clinical affiliates at any time.

2. Background check and drug screen performed through www.advantagestudents.com.  Students will be required to pay out of pocket for an additional drug screen and background check before the end of the first year.
3. Proof of professional liability insurance through HPSO as a Diagnostic Medical Sonography Student, prior to enrollment, which documents coverage for first year of enrollment (must be renewed before end of first year).
4. Current CPR (BLS for Healthcare Provider) through the American Heart Association documentation.
5. Any on-line hospital or clinical site orientations assigned by the school.

Background Check – Drug Screen Policy

All students accepted in the Schools of Radiation and Imaging Technologies are required by Grady Health System (GHS) to undergo a criminal background check and drug screen test prior to enrollment in the program. This procedure is conducted after a student has been provisionally accepted into the program. Students are responsible for all charges incurred for these screens. If the student has lived in states other than Georgia or has lived in other countries, additional fees for searches will apply.

The Student Package (background check and drug screen) must be ordered online through the website;   www.advantagestudents.com by the date designated by the program. Results are accessed by GHS Human Resources’ employee on-boarding coordinator and student placement coordinators of the clinical affiliates. Unsatisfactory/positive results of the criminal background check and/or drug screen will result in ineligibility for admission to the program.

The drug screen follows National Institute on Drug Abuse guidelines and screens for eleven substances. Test results that fall outside of any acceptable ranges are considered positive test results. Any positive result (unless the student has a physician’s documentation of need for the drug) will exclude student from placement in the program.  A clinical facility reserves the right to remove a student from the facility for suspicion of substance abuse, including alcohol. The clinical facility reserves the right to request that the student submit to a repeat drug screening at the student’s expense. Failure to comply will result in the student’s immediate expulsion from the facility.

Criminal background check criteria include:

• Georgia Statewide Criminal Records – GCIC
• If applicant has resided outside the State of Georgia within the past 7 years then those additional jurisdictions will be searched.
• Violent Sexual Offender and Predator Registry search (aka Nationwide Sexual Offender Registry)
• Social Security Number Verification
• Residency History
• Nationwide Health Care Fraud and Abuse Scan
  Search includes – Medicare & Medicaid Sanctioned, Excluded Individuals, Office of Research Integrity (ORI), Office of Regulatory Affairs (ORA), FDA Debarment Check, Office of Inspector General (OIG)-List of Excluded Individuals/Entities, General Services Administration (GSA)-Excluded Parties List.
• US Patriot Act Search – includes – OFAC Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) and Blocked Persons, OFAC Sanctioned Countries, including Major Cities & Ports, Non-Cooperative Countries and Territories, Department of State Trade Control (DTC) Debarred Parties, U.S. Bureau of Industry & Security (formerly BXA) – Unverified Entities List Denied Entities List, Denied Persons List, FBI Most Wanted Terrorists and Seeking Information, FBI Top Ten Most Wanted, INTERPOL Most Wanted List, Bank of England Sanctions List, OSFI – Canadian Sanctions List, United Nations Consolidated Sanctions List, Politically Exposed Persons List, European Union Terrorism List, World Bank Ineligible Firms.

Technical Standards and ADA compliance

To fulfill the requirements of the Schools of Radiation and Imaging Technologies, students must be able to meet the physical demands associated with the profession.  During the interview process all students receive a copy of the Technical Standards and Americans with Disabilities policy and they also verified that they are capable of performing all technical standards.

Examples of these requirements include but are not limited to the following.

 Code:  F = frequently     O = Occasionally     NA = not applicable

Individuals applying for admission must be able to meet the physical and emotional requirements of the program.  Students admitted must possess the following qualities:

• The emotional maturity and stability to approach highly stressful human situation in a calm and rational manner.
• The ability to make clinical judgment using critical thinking.
• The ability to adhere to ethical standards of conduct as well as applicable state and federal laws.
• The ability to provide effective written, oral, nonverbal communication with patients and their families, colleagues, health care providers, and the public.

Americans with Disabilities Compliance

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the definition of an individual with a disability is defined by the ADA as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a person who has a history or record of such an impairment, or a person who is perceived by others as having such an impairment.  Students must be mentally and physically capable of fulfilling the objectives of the program to be qualified.  In keeping with its mission and goals, and in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the program promotes an environment of respect and support for persons with disabilities and will make reasonable accommodations for students.

In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, a student/applicant with a documented disability must submit a written request for reasonable accommodation.  Upon receipt of the request, accommodations for classroom and/or clinical settings will be considered for reasonableness by the program’s Admissions Committee and the hospital’s administrative committee.  Accommodations that compromise patient care, or that fundamentally alter the nature of the program or activity, are not considered to be reasonable.  The committee and advisors will meet to determine whether or not reasonable accommodations can be made, and the student/applicant will be informed of the decision in a timely manner following the meeting.

Reasonable accommodations for the hearing impaired in the classroom include lecture notes, and adjustment of seating in the front of the classroom.  Reasonable accommodations for the visually impaired in the classroom include enlargement of font for assigned readings, extra time to complete reading assignments and seating in the front of the classroom.

Patient care and safety and program physical technical standards cannot be compromised.