Patient-centered Radiology: Where Are We, Where Do We Want to Be, and How Do We Get There?

Abstract

Purpose The objectives of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Patient-Centered Radiology Steering Committee survey were to (a) assess RSNA members' general attitudes and experiences concerning patient-centered radiology, with specific attention paid to radiologist-to-patient communication; (b) examine the members' barriers to communicating more directly with patients; and (c) explore their perceptions of how such barriers can be overcome. Materials and Methods A total of 5999 radiologists were invited by e-mail to complete an anonymous electronic survey developed by the Steering Committee and the RSNA Department of Research. Participants were asked to identify aspects of patient-centered care important to their practice, report on their interactions with patients, and share their opinions on radiologist-patient communication. Statistical analyses were performed by using the χ test and analysis of variance. Results The response rate was 12% (n = 694, 109 invitations were undeliverable). Most respondents (89%, 611 of 684) agreed that promoting awareness of the role of radiology in patients' overall health care is important to how they practice. The majority (73%, 421 of 575) reported that time or workload frequently prevented them from communicating directly with patients. The majority (74%, 423 of 572) reported that a personal sense of satisfaction was likely to motivate them to communicate more directly with patients, but many commented that changes to reimbursement and compensation would help them communicate with patients more directly. Conclusion Many radiologists support the concept of communicating more directly with patients but report they are constrained by time or workload. Changes to reimbursement schemes may help mitigate these barriers to one crucial aspect of patient-centered care. RSNA, 2017 Online supplemental material is available for this article.

Creating a Radiology Quality and Safety Program: Principles and Pitfalls

“…Debriefing with these advocates after they assist a patient can provide useful insight into where QS efforts should be focused. Beyond seeking to understand patients' experiences, diagnostic radiologists are increasingly interested in more direct interactions with patients (49). Opportunities for this include establishing radiology consultation clinics and directly embedding radiologists into subspecialty clinics where they can meet with patients during their clinical appointments (50)(51)(52).…”

Providing Value-Based Service to a Sprawling Orthopaedics Practice

“…Although referred patients generally arrive with outside imaging studies and interpretations, numerous studies showed that second-opinion subspecialty radiology consultations are clinically valuable and often lead to changes in patient management. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] In fact, discrepancy rates were found to be as high as 26% between radiologists with different levels of specialty training including those trained in MSK imaging. [20][21][22] Although we believe this phenomenon to be true throughout the MSK imaging arena, we have shown the value of subspecialty MSK imaging expertise in the orthopaedic oncology arena.…”

“…These changes in orthopaedic practices can offer radiologists a primitive road map to navigate with an end point of providing excellent service, quality imaging, and consistent effective communication. 6 Radiology practices are also enlarging in physician numbers, whether in corporate, private practice, academic, or hybrid models. MSK imaging is trending toward increasing subspecialization, with a greater percentage of high-end orthopaedic imaging studies now interpreted by subspecialty fellowship-trained radiologists.…”

Enhancing patient value efficiently: Medical history interviews create patient satisfaction and contribute to an improved quality of radiologic examinations

“…Given the importance of patient involvement in the medical care process, the lack of possibilities for patients to talk to the radiologists seems to be detrimental. The radiological associations ACR and RSNA consider this shortcoming a potential threat to the profession and therefore promote a more patient-centered radiology [ 11 , 12 ]. Hence, they launched several counter-acting initiatives and campaigns, such as “Face of Radiology”, “Five Patients per Day”, or “Radiology Cares” to enhance patient-doctor interactions and communication [ 13 – 15 ].…”