Evaluating the effectiveness of intensive versus non‐intensive image interpretation education for radiographers: a randomised control trial study protocol

Abstract

Radiographer commenting systems have not been successfully implemented in many Australian hospitals, despite evidence of their benefit and adoption elsewhere, such as the United Kingdom. An important contributor to the lack of widespread adoption of radiographer commenting in Australia (and likely elsewhere) is the limited availability of accessible education options for radiographers. The purpose of this randomised controlled trial is to compare the effectiveness of the same image interpretation education program delivered over an intensive 2‐day period (intensive format) versus a series of shorter regular workshops (non‐intensive format). The study design is a multicentre, stratified (by years of experience) two group parallel‐arm single‐blind (assessor blinded) randomised controlled trial. Participants will be allocated to one of the two groups: (1) intensive format of education or (2) non‐intensive format of education in a 1:1 ratio. Participants will undergo assessments before education, at 1 week post‐intervention completion and at 12 weeks post‐intervention completion. Findings from this trial will be of relevance to radiographers seeking image interpretation training as well as organisations providing image interpretation education to prepare clinical staff for participation in a radiographer commenting system. A limitation of the trial is that the sample will be inclusive of radiographers, and findings may not be able to be directly extrapolated to other clinical disciplines (e.g. junior doctors, physiotherapists or nurse practitioners).

Improving the delivery of health care to patients: radiographers and frontline image interpretation

“…While this is not advanced practice, the production of it will require access to ongoing educational support as Neep et al argue in their paper within this edition of the journal. 18 The systematic review into educational methods used to train radiographers to interpret chest images, as conducted by McLaughlin et al, 19 confirms the necessity for post-graduate training in relation to achieving accuracy levels that equate with the gold standard which is the radiology report. Therefore, we need to make sure that all image interpretation courses are appropriately constructed with measurable learning outcomes and supported by evidence-based learning modules, selfdirected learning activities, and a rigorous and defensible assessment regime.…”

“…Also, completion of a training course whether one provided in-house or as part of a University accredited Masters' program must be accompanied by an ongoing audit process and benchmarking within a strong clinical governance framework. 1,11,12,[18][19][20] Where to now? While a degree of success in advanced practice has been achieved in radiation therapy, the same cannot be said for general radiography.…”

“…While this is not advanced practice, the production of it will require access to ongoing educational support as Neep et al. argue in their paper within this edition of the journal . The systematic review into educational methods used to train radiographers to interpret chest images, as conducted by McLaughlin et al., confirms the necessity for post‐graduate training in relation to achieving accuracy levels that equate with the gold standard which is the radiology report.…”

“…Therefore, we need to make sure that all image interpretation courses are appropriately constructed with measurable learning outcomes and supported by evidence‐based learning modules, self‐directed learning activities, and a rigorous and defensible assessment regime. Also, completion of a training course whether one provided in‐house or as part of a University accredited Masters’ program must be accompanied by an ongoing audit process and benchmarking within a strong clinical governance framework …”

Evaluating the effectiveness of intensive versus non‐intensive image interpretation education for radiographers: a randomised controlled trial

“…Details of the trial protocol have been previously described. 9 In summary, this was a multi-centre, stratified (by years of experience) two group parallel arm, single blind, (assessor blinded) randomised controlled trial ( Fig. 1).…”