Aims and objectives
Demand for radiological imaging has increased inexorably over recent years [1,2].
Prior to our study,
we had noticed a trend of increasing number of scans being reported by the on-callregistrars in our department.
We therefore investigated long-term trends in out-of-hours reporting of inpatient CTs and ultrasounds at our institution and sought to improve registrarsatisfactionand workflow management.
At our hospital trust the out-of-hours radiologyservice,
covering three principle hospitals (including a major trauma centre),
ispredominantly provided bysenior registrars (third year of radiology training or above).During weekdays the...
Methods and materials
We collected qualitative data on registrar experience and quantitative data on workload in a 2-partaudit.
Part 1
The number of inpatient and emergency department CT and ultrasound scans reported out-of-hours by radiologists over the last ten years at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust was retrieved from the Radiology Information System. Additional data were collected regarding the time at which the report was created,
and whether the scan was reported by a trainee or a consultant.
The results were analyzed by creating a Visual Basic macro...
Results
Part 1
In thefirstpart of our work,
we looked at out-of-hour reporting trends over a ten-year period.
Over this time,
the number of acute CTs reported overnight increased by 400% from an average of 4-5 per night in 2008 to 20 per night in 2018 (figure 3).
Likewise,
the average number of CTs reported per day at the weekend increased by 300% from around 20 scans to 60 scans at the end of the period (Figure 4).
There was a 250% increase in the number...
Conclusion
Out-of-hours acute CT reporting at our institution has increased dramatically over 10 years,
with a 400% increase in overnight CT reporting.
Despite this year-on-year increase in the demand for CT,
theexpansion of the evening on-call team has reduced the number of scans handed over for the trainee working overnight to report,
and has improved registrars' level of satisfaction in their night shifts.
Going forward,
we aim to collect similar data on workload annually to monitor trends,
and to expand the Visual Basic Macro to include...
Personal information
Andrew Murchison MA BMBCh MRCP,
Department of Radiology,
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
[email protected].
Mitchell Chen BMBCh MEng DPhil,
Department of Radiology,Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
[email protected].
Paul Lyon MBBS DPhil,
Department of Radiology,Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
[email protected].
Safia Rehman MBBS,Department of Radiology,Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
[email protected].
David Grant FRCR,Department of Radiology,Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
[email protected].
Sergios Gargalas FRCR,Department of Radiology,Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
[email protected].
Sarfraz Nazir MA BMBCh MRCSFRCR,Department of Radiology,Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
[email protected].
References
[1] Bhargavan M and Sunshine JH.
Utilization of Radiology Services in the United States: Levels and Trends in Modalities,
Regions,
and Populations.
Radiology (2005); 234 (3): 824-32.
[2] The Royal College of Radiologists.
Clinical Radiology UK workforce census 2015 report.
London: The Royal College of Radiologists,
2016.
[3] Williams LH and Drew T.
Distraction in diagnostic radiology: how is search through volumetric medical images affected by interruptions? Cogn Res Princ Implic (2017); 2 (10): 12.