This assignment gives your first experience of reading and reacting to journal literature in Allied Health Research.  Many students never realize there's a world beyond the textbooks and so it's all new to them.  You learn that in your specialty there are things printed every day that are new.  You will have to keep up to maintain your professional competency.  Journals are a resource that you can use, both here in school and when you get out in a professional situation.  The assignment is carefully sequenced with clear due dates and instructions. 

I believe that all of you, as future health care professionals, should be aware of how you can keep up on new developments in allied health and the issues that surround them.  Therefore, the objectives of this assignment are to familiarize you with the available literature in medicine and allied health.  

To meet the objectives of the assignment, you will:

·         Read and study, in detail, one current article on a topic covered in class from any of the three journals mentioned above. 

·         You will submit two assigned journal articles as Discussion Forums, and you may submit 2 or more of your own for credit in ALHE4060.  Ask the instructor if you wish to submit more than 2.

Details of What You Need To Do: 

1.        Go to the library and check out the issues of the journal.  You can also use the Internet for a resource.

2.        TIP: Most Journals publish a subject index in their December issue.  This is extremely useful and convenient when performing searches on subjects. 

3.        Look through the selected article ass well as the rest of that issue of the journal and several other recent issues to get a clear understanding of:

4.        what kinds of information is published,

5.        what audience it is intended to serve

6.        Whether references for further information are given. 

7.        Complete the Journal Article Review Form and submit by the due date. 

To receive full credit for this assignment, you must answer all questions on the review form and submit it by the due date.  Here is the information you should submit to your Research website:

Title of Journal

Article___________The PACS Advantage____________________

Title of Journal

_________________RT-Image__________________

Volume_________vol.18 no.36_____________________ Date ___10___/__05___/__05____ Page Number(s) ______________

·          What organization is responsible for publishing the journal you chose?

        Valley Forge Publishing Group

·          What is your overall evaluation of this article?

_____Poor    ______Fair  ______Good   _____Very Good       __X___Excellent

·          Why did you choose to review this particular article?

                I chose this article because it is very interesting to me and it has helped me a lot with my research  paper.

·          How would you rate this article as a tool for teaching a student about cardiopulmonary physiology, radiography, or another allied health specialty? 

Students:  ____Poor ____Fair _____Good__Very Good  __X__Excellent

Teachers:____Poor____Fair_____Good__Very Good  __X__Excellent

Patients: ____Poor ____Fair _____Good ___Very Good __X__Excellent

·          Comment on the readability of this article. 

                It is very easy to read.

·          Course Topics covered:

        The challenge of implementing the PACS system, and then the results they got.

·          Brief Summary:

        The article begins by talking about their need for PACS.  It then talks about the challenges of putting it in.  Then it talks about the results of getting PACS.

·          Identify and attempt to explain three (3) terms, procedures or concepts that were unfamiliar to you when reviewing this article.

1.        80% of hospitals in the U.S. have not installed PACS.

2.        Provides instant access to studies.

3.        All the different software that PACS consists of.

·          Detail the strengths/weaknesses of this article.

        I think it is a very strong article because it talks about how the hospital was worried about the cost of PACS and how well it will work, and it turns out that it wasn’t that expensive and it worked better than they could’ve imagined. 

·          How might this article be useful to you in your further studies and career?

        It was very useful for me in my research, and it has helped me be more knowledgeable about PACS.  That is important for the future because soon most hospitals will have PACS.

·          Does the article include a list of references/citations that can be used to find more information on the topics they cover? 

        No

Your Name: ________Justin Hildenbrand_________ Date: ___12___/___01___/___05__