1 in 5 patients lack information before undergoing imaging exams

Radiologists have embraced patient-centered care with open arms in recent years, but a lot of the focus has gone toward explaining imaging results. So what about communicating information to patients before the exam? According to a new study published in Radiology, patients are often left with unanswered questions going into imaging exams.

The authors surveyed patients and caregivers at six sites—three pediatric hospitals and three hospitals that primarily serve adults—before they were scheduled to undergo a diagnostic radiologic exam. Fifty-eight percent of the more than than 1,400 respondents were undergoing imaging exams themselves, and 42 percent had a child or other dependent undergoing the exam.

Overall, 78 percent of respondents answered that they received information about their imaging exam, a statistic that stood out to the authors.

“This means one in five people are showing up for the exam without any information about the test they are getting,” lead author Jay K. Pahade, MD, from the Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut, said in a prepared statement. “This is an important finding in today's healthcare system, where we want more patient engagement and involvement.”

In the same statement, Pahade emphasized the important of patients having a positive experience. “In the radiology realm, we need to take more ownership over the entire imaging process,” he said. “One big gap has been in the pre-imaging part of that process, and the data show we have work to do in closing that gap.”

The study also revealed ordering providers were the most common source of information for patients, being cited 64 percent of the time. Radiology departments or imaging centers were cited 19 percent of the time, and staff members—including nurses, reception, etc.—were cited 16 percent of the time.

“This finding highlights a need to engage with and provide resources and information to referring providers, which could occur either locally or at the level of professional radiology organizations,” Pahade and the study’s other authors wrote in their analysis.

On a similar note, ordering providers are who patients prefer to receive this information from.

The authors also found that respondents preparing for MR and nuclear medicine exams were much more likely to report that they received information in advance. “Only 21 percent of respondents preferred to receive information from the radiology center and only 9 percent preferred to receive examination information from providers directly involved in either performing or interpreting the examination,” Pahade et al. wrote. “This preference may relate to lack of awareness of the role of technologists and radiologists in the imaging examination.”

So, what information do patients find the most important? Pahade and colleagues pointed out that patients place the most importance on basic information such as pre-exam preparation. Respondents didn’t consider issues related to radiation dose to be as high of a priority.

“The discordance between the information patients feel is important (preparation) and the information that is emphasized by radiologic societies (radiation) suggests that a shift in emphasis is needed and reflects an opportunity to engage more with patients on topics that are of higher importance to them,” the authors wrote.

Michael Walter
Michael Walter, Managing Editor

Michael has more than 16 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.

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