Quality

The focus of quality improvement in healthcare is to bolster performance and processes related to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Leaders in this space also ensure the proper selection of imaging exams and procedures, and monitor the safety of services, among other duties. Reimbursement programs such as the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) utilize financial incentives to improve quality. This also includes setting and maintaining care quality initiatives, such as the requirements set by the Joint Commission.

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FDA set to resume regular imaging site inspections beginning July 20

“In order to move to the next phase, we must see downward trends in new cases of COVID-19 and hospitalizations in a given area,” advised Commissioner Stephen Hahn, MD. 

How radiologists can avoid becoming a ‘ghost in a dark room,' take ownership of patients

This entails assuming responsibility for each individual, avoiding excuses and resolving to make things right, ACR President Debra Monticciolo, MD, shared in recent remarks. 

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CMS to grant hardship relief for radiologists in the 2020 Merit-Based Incentive Program

Providers who have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic can now submit an Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Application outlining their challenges. 

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Law change alone not enough to close abnormal imaging-findings care gap, study finds

That’s according to a new analysis of care at one imaging department since Pennsylvania passed the “Patient Test Result Information Act" in 2018. 

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Survey explores the top 3 quality metrics on radiology practices’ radars, and how they’re used

Turnaround time is radiology groups' most commonly used quality metric, according to a preliminary survey of nearly 200 providers. 

Senior Care

Radiologist house-call program drops ED visits by 77%, with patient satisfaction scores soaring

Hospital readmissions have also plummeted by 50% among a population of more than 1,000 seniors, experts detailed during the Society of Interventional Radiology’s virtual meeting. 

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Citing ‘anxiety’ as a risk for screening mammography is ‘benevolent sexism,’ expert says

As the debate continues over whether women should receive regular breast cancer screenings before age 50, one expert believes it’s time to put a common excuse to rest. 

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Accreditors should not punish radiologists, other docs for seeking mental health support, advocates say

The Society of Interventional Radiology, American Medical Association and others made their case for compassion in a recently released joint statement. 

Around the web

The patient, who was being cared for in the ICU, was not accompanied or monitored by nursing staff during his exam, despite being sedated.

The nuclear imaging isotope shortage of molybdenum-99 may be over now that the sidelined reactor is restarting. ASNC's president says PET and new SPECT technologies helped cardiac imaging labs better weather the storm.

CMS has more than doubled the CCTA payment rate from $175 to $357.13. The move, expected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cardiac CT, received immediate praise from imaging specialists.