Rethink Imaging

In this episode of Rethink Imaging, host Chris St. John sits down with Dr. Francesco Ria to explore a critical but often misunderstood concept in CT imaging: total risk.
While radiation dose often dominates conversations around CT safety, Dr. Ria explains why clinical risk including missed diagnoses, delayed treatment, and underutilized imaging — frequently outweighs radiation risk when exams are not properly justified or optimized. The conversation reframes how imaging professionals, clinicians, and leaders should think about safety, appropriateness, and value in modern CT practice.
Rather than focusing narrowly on dose reduction, Dr. Ria advocates for a more balanced approach that prioritizes diagnostic quality, patient outcomes, and evidence-based decision-making across the imaging pathway.

Dr. Claudia Kirsch joins Rethink Imaging to discuss how viruses like SARS-CoV-2 reshape the brain through inflammation, vascular injury, and immune pathways.
From unexplained smell loss to the discovery of the nervus terminalis as a potential viral pathway, this episode highlights how advanced imaging is uncovering new insights into neuroinflammation and viral-driven disease including implications for cancer biology and long-term brain health.

Medical imaging faces a workforce crisis that cannot be solved with short-term staffing fixes.
In this episode of Rethink Imaging, Chris St. John speaks with Geoffrey Roche, SVP of Healthcare at RizePoint, about why imaging remains a hidden profession, why more than 20,000 students sit on waiting lists every year, and how outdated accreditation models are limiting access to care.
Geoffrey shares a systems-level view of workforce development, drawing from his experience across hospital systems, higher education, Siemens Healthineers, and global health education. The conversation explores apprenticeships, imaging assistants, retention challenges, and why imaging must evolve its training pathways if it wants a sustainable future.

James leads one of the region’s most advanced nuclear theranostics programs, using molecular imaging not only to diagnose cancer, but to guide and deliver treatment. This conversation stays grounded in practice: how patients are selected, how imaging drives decisions, and how programs actually get built.
In this episode of Rethink Imaging, Chris St. John sits down with Dr. James Cassuto to unpack what theranostics looks like when it’s done right, inside a real health system, serving real patients.

In this episode of Rethink Imaging, Chris St. John sits down with Dr. Ali Tejani, a neuroradiology fellow at UCSF and a national leader in radiology education, imaging informatics, and AI literacy.
Ali shares why radiology training programs must evolve now to prepare trainees for a future where AI is embedded in everyday clinical workflows.
From launching an imaging informatics and business intelligence track during residency to co-directing national informatics education initiatives, Ali explains how radiologists learn best, why traditional didactics are no longer enough, and how podcasts, social media, and hands-on AI experiences are reshaping education.
The conversation explores generational learning differences, the risk of deskilling, ethical AI use, and why being a critical, informed AI user matters more than knowing how to code.