Cedars-Sinai Blog
Faces of Cedars-Sinai: X-Ray Tech Breanna Monnin
Cedars-Sinai x-ray technologist Breanna Monnin
Meet Breanna Monnin, X-ray technologist at Cedars-Sinai!
As part of the S. Mark Taper Imaging team, she works with patients throughout the hospital.
We sat down with Breanna to learn more about her role and how she found her way to it.
"Patients always ask, 'Is it broken?' but I can't tell patients what the X-rays find. A radiologist has to read the X-rays and the doctor will tell them the findings."
What does a normal shift look like for you?
Breanna Monnin: Most days I'm working in the ER, but some days I'm working in operating rooms.
In the emergency room, I have a portable machine and I work on trauma X-rays like broken bones or patients with chest pain.
In the OR, I do a kind of X-ray called fluoroscopy, which helps surgeons see real-time images of the patient. I have to listen to the doctor, predict what they're going to do next, and then X-ray whatever they need during the case.
What do you like most about your job?
BM: Getting to work with patients.
I know they're in a lot of pain and I'm the worst person to see because I'm moving them around to get the X-ray boards under them. We have to do that to get a clear picture and the boards are pretty hard.
I just want to help them out as much as I can because I know it can be a painful process.
Why did you decide to become an X-ray tech?
BM: When I was a kid, I fell playing hockey and I thought I broke my butt. I went to the doctor and had an X-ray done. When the doctor showed me the X-ray I just thought, "What? There's bone in there?!"
I just thought it was so cool. The technology behind it is just insane! That combined with the pathology, anatomy, and getting to work in a hospital really brought me to this.
What's one thing people might not know about being an X-ray tech?
BM: Patients always ask, "Is it broken?" but I can't tell patients what the X-rays find. A radiologist has to read the X-rays and the doctor will tell them the findings.
The job is also very physical. We have to move patients around to get the right angles and into the right position and it can be difficult.
What do you like to do when you're not at work?
BM: I go straight to CrossFit when I get off work. It's where I release all the stress of the day. I like to lift weights and run. I also play field hockey.
