Mills-Peninsula School of Diagnostic Imaging launching careers, fulfilling needs in the medical industry for decades
A Bay Area school that has been preparing women for a career as a medical professional with tuition-free instruction, now in its sixth decade, is responding to an industry shortage with newly-minted graduates.
In 1908, philanthropy efforts by Elisabeth Mills Reid created what is now Sutter Health's Mills-Peninsula Medical Center in Burlingame. But Reid's efforts didn't stop there. Throughout her life, she also founded schools to help train nurses.
In 1963, Mills-Peninsula followed her lead and founded the tuition-free, School of Diagnostic Imaging where most of the hundreds of graduates to date have been women.
That includes Sabina Palmieri, a member of the class of 1993 and is now an instructor at the school. She takes pride in teaching the next generation of radiological technicians.
"When they graduate, they're ready to go, they're confident, and they're ready to go out into the community," Palmieri said. "If I can instill the love of radiology into them and also the care for the patients in our hospital, I'm just so happy to do that."
Program director Cynthia Payne takes pride in the fact that women make up the majority of the school's graduates.
"This is a career that if you're a young woman, that you can be self-supportive," said Payne.
Medical imaging is what often allows doctors to see, said Payne. Radiological technicians perform X-rays, computed tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, ultrasounds, and more types of scans. Payne says the services are currently in high demand throughout the medical world.
"There is a big shortage across the country of technologists," she said.
Women play a significant role in the field.
"Men don't do mammography," Payne said. "Mammography is a big deal for screening purposes to prevent advanced stages of breast cancer."
Palmieri hopes to encourage more women to follow in her footsteps.
"We also go out to high schools and career days there to encourage young girls who may not be ready to go to a four-year college, or have the opportunity to go to a four-year college," she said.
Palmieri has been able to pursue a career path that has proved to be fulfilling and rewarding.
"It's just a great way to give back to the community," she said.
The Mills-Peninsula School of Diagnostic Imaging is a hospital-based community benefit program funded through philanthropy and other organizations. It's a two-year program, and a person does not need a four-year college degree to be considered. Upon completion, graduates are eligible to take the state and national certification exam. Some graduates report starting salaries of $50/hour.
The application period is open through April 1st.
