Less than half of radiologists review images ahead of multidisciplinary tumor board meetings
Less than half of radiologists review medical images ahead of multidisciplinary tumor board meetings, with time constraints a key factor in the lack of preparation.
Most radiologists do, in fact, attend these get-togethers—in which doctors from different specialties assemble to review and discuss treatment options for a patient. Yet barriers such as time, along with a lack of education credits, might be keeping imaging physicians from getting the full benefit of these meetings, experts reported Monday in European Radiology.
“Our survey—conducted within a selected group of radiologists with a special interest in oncologic imaging—has revealed several criticisms that need to be solved in order to ensure that the presence of a radiologist in [multidisciplinary tumor boards] can yield a real added value both to the radiologist and the entire MTB team,” concluded Emanuele Neri, an associate professor of radiology with the University of Pisa, Italy, and colleagues from several other institutions.
Neri et al. reached their conclusions by polling 292 radiologist members, with the European Society of Oncologic Imaging, about their tumor board habits. All told, 89% of respondents said they attend MTBs, and yet only about 44% said they reviewed more than 70% of images prior to the gathering.
Apathy did not appear to be the cause of the problem. Nearly 87% said they perceived benefits from these meetings; almost 83% said they improved radiologists’ knowledge of cancer treatment; and 57% said they improved interaction between rads and referrers discussing rare cases.
But clearly, there is still room for improvement, the survey found. Lack of accreditation with continuing medical education was the biggest issue, cited by 85% of respondents, followed by meetings occurring during regular working hours at 72%. Only about 66.5% of radiologists said they actually even received the list of patients and imaging studies beforehand. And lack of time due to a busy schedule (almost 47%) and poor image quality (18%) were also cited as barriers.
“Currently, the significant time expenditure required for preparation and performance of MTB sessions finds no counterpart in adequate reimbursement and CME accreditation,” the authors wrote. “Since the demand for MTB sessions will be further increasing, considerable efforts are urgently needed to ensure that the radiology service is adequately acknowledged.”
Read much more from the survey in European Radiology here.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.