Sonographer

A sonographer (also known as a diagnostic medical sonographer) is a university-trained health professional who uses ultrasound to create images of structures inside your body.

The sonographer uses a small, hand-held probe (called a transducer) which they move across the part of the body being imaged using a sliding and rotating action. The transducer produces high- frequency sound waves that are transmitted into your body. The sound waves are reflected back and recorded to create ultrasound images. The procedure is called an ultrasound examination or sonogram.

The sonographer works with a clinical radiologist who diagnoses the images to makes the medical diagnosis. The clinical radiologist may sometimes need to examine you to check your condition or talk to you to better understand your symptoms in order to gain a full understanding of what the ultrasound is showing.

A number of universities in Australia and New Zealand offer courses in medical sonography. The Australian Sonography Accreditation Registry  and the New Zealand Medical Radiation Technologists Board  have information on training requirements and providers.

Page last modified on 11/10/2016.