Teaching Moral Courage in Radiology: Why Soft Skills Matter as Much as Technical Training

Episode notes

The soft skills you bring to imaging are just as critical as your technical expertise. In this episode of Frame by Frame: Rethink Imaging, host Chris St. John is joined by Dr. Kristin Beinschroth, a radiologic technologist, educator, and researcher, whose recent dissertation explores the connection between moral courage, confidence, and success among radiology students. Together, they unpack how moral courage predicts stronger academic and clinical outcomes than confidence alone, why students with higher confidence sometimes perform worse, and how educators can teach ethical decision-making through modeling, reflection, and simulation. Dr. Beinschroth explains how radiology’s unique pressures, from high patient volumes to ethical gray zones, make moral courage essential to professional excellence. She shares how the “See One, Do One, Teach One” framework builds resilience, why nearly 1,800 clinical hours are non-negotiable, and how affective domain teaching can be embedded into an already demanding curriculum.