{"id":12320,"date":"2026-06-30T10:41:29","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/?p=12320"},"modified":"2026-06-30T10:41:29","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:41:29","slug":"radiology-graduates-career-coming-into-focus-at-piedmont-henry-hospital","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/2026\/06\/30\/radiology-graduates-career-coming-into-focus-at-piedmont-henry-hospital\/","title":{"rendered":"Radiology Graduate\u2019s Career Coming Into Focus at Piedmont Henry Hospital\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Genesis Horton\u2019s (\u201825) shift as an X-ray technologist at Piedmont Henry Hospital in Stockbridge, Georgia, starts at noon. But the Georgia Southern University radiologic sciences and Honors College graduate says the real day begins the moment she sets her bag down on the floor of the radiology department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTypically, I walk into work for the day and see everybody running around,\u201d Horton said, laughing. \u201cBut we train for things like this in school. So when I log on and see something like 20 pending X-ray requests, I don\u2019t get nervous or start panicking \u2014 I get started.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She\u2019s just one of a team of imaging professionals spread out across Piedmont Henry. She estimates that she crosses the brown floors leading in and out of the radiography unit more than 100 times in a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI like to call us the movement team,\u201d she explained. \u201cWe\u2019re in and out of the operating room, we\u2019re up on the floors, we\u2019re in the emergency department. So yeah, we\u2019re kind of everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Horton has been working at Piedmont Henry for a little under six months, but quickly found her place among the machine beeps and loudspeaker calls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI really like doing X-ray,\u201d she said. \u201cA lot of people don\u2019t stay, as they want to start doing more complex imaging, like CT scans and MRI. But I really want to master one field before moving on to the next.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She credits her time at Georgia Southern as the reason she can handle anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere are other radiography programs, where you\u2019ll start learning about the structure of the hand,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd then it\u2019s immediately off to clinical. And it\u2019s not helpful, because those students won\u2019t have the opportunity to be graded on their work. And they\u2019ll become good at doing hands, but then not be as familiar with knees.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Horton says it\u2019s not like that at Georgia Southern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI liked how my professors formatted their classes,\u201d she explained. \u201cThe first two semesters covered book work, giving us a technical understanding of what we would be doing in imaging. So when we went to clinicals in the third semester, we were familiar with the processes and procedures we needed to follow.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Horton\u2019s efforts were rewarded with her appointment to participate in the prestigious American Society of Radiologic Technologists\u2019 (ASRT) Student Leadership Development Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radiography program director Sharon Gilliard-Smith, Ed.D., said she was proud of Horton\u2019s participation in the ASRT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt provides an avenue with fellow students, technologists, and mentors across the country,\u201d explained Gilliard-Smith. \u201cThis is something especially valuable if you plan to work outside the immediate region after graduation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Horton says the society and faculty provided more than an education; the relationships she made with her professors became a much-needed support system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat first semester was a blur,\u201d Horton admits. \u201cRadiography physics, learning how the X-ray tube works, studying the effects of radiation, kilovoltage peaks and milliamperage per second\u2026I was definitely in their offices whenever I could be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s what helped her become a radiographer adept at capturing accurate and detailed images. Which translates into a few extra minutes in the hospital break room come 7 p.m.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe only get 30 minutes, so I have to make them count,\u201d she said. \u201cI just take advantage of any moment of silence I can find in the break room.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the clock turns 11 p.m. Horton mulls over the events of the day as she heads back to her car.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m usually thinking about my bed as I\u2019m leaving,\u201d Horton said. \u201cBut then I\u2019m also thinking about what happened throughout the day and what I can do better in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She exits the parking lot and heads home, passing by construction sites dotting the campus grounds. The hospital is growing, just like her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI still have to remind myself that every day isn\u2019t perfect,\u201d Horton said. \u201cBut I went to Georgia Southern. I\u2019m more than ready to face whatever comes my way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014 Bradley Mullis<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Genesis Horton\u2019s (\u201825) shift as an X-ray technologist at Piedmont Henry Hospital in Stockbridge, Georgia, starts at noon. But the Georgia Southern University radiologic sciences and Honors College graduate says the real day begins the moment she sets her bag down on the floor of the radiology department. \u201cTypically, I walk into work for the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":12322,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[91,92],"class_list":["post-12320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-fall-2025","tag-spring-2026"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t