Society of Interventional Radiology launches initiative seeking to ‘define value of IR’

The Society of Interventional Radiology is launching a new initiative that seeks to better define the specialty and its many benefits to the healthcare industry. 

SIR touted the effort in a news update to its members, published Aug. 6. As healthcare continues to evolve, the society believes it has a responsibility to “define IR’s future” on behalf of practices and the systems they serve. 

The society is teaming with TriLumen Health Partners, a boutique business consulting firm, as part of the process, helping it develop a roadmap for quantifying IR’s value. 

“Have you ever sat across the table from hospital leadership, trying to make the case for the value IR provides, only to watch the conversation default to relative value units and procedure volumes?” the society said in its news update. “The initiative is designed to help SIR articulate what makes IR essential today, anticipate how the market is changing, and build the infrastructure members need to thrive across diverse practice settings now and in the future,” it added later. 

SIR President Saher Sabri, MD, further discussed the initiative in a recent column, published July 20. He noted that the SIR Executive Committee has already identified key actions for 2026 and 2027 during his term, with the effort to extend through 2029 and beyond. “Interventional radiology has long understood its value,” he writes. However, others often only understand the specialty “anecdotally,” measuring its worth incompletely. 

As part of the project, SIR plans to conduct interviews with payers, hospital system leaders, trainees, radiologists and other stakeholders to better understand perceptions around interventional care. Early findings have been promising, Sabri says. About 87% of payers rate IR as superior on total episode costs, while 73% of health system leaders say it is “good or excellent.” About 73% of insurers rate IR as superior on outcomes and safety, and 94% of practicing interventional specialists describe IR as delivering significant value to their department. 

“At the same time, the findings reveal a critical gap: IR may be viewed as strategically important while still being treated operationally as a support function. That distinction matters,” according to Sabri. “If IR is recognized for its value but not positioned as a service line, growth engine or clinical partner, then the specialty’s contributions may not translate into reimbursement, resources, autonomy or influence.”

Sabri said the roadmap is organized around five pillars, with prioritized initiatives within each category. They include (1) enabling members to win in their local markets; (2) building the data foundation; (3) advancing national advocacy; (4) shaping technology adoption on IR’s terms; and (5) developing the workforce of the future. 

“Not every pillar will affect every practice in the same way,” Sabri wrote.  “The needs of an IR section in a large academic medical center differ from those of IRs in community hospitals or outpatient-based labs and ambulatory surgery centers. That is why the project includes practice-specific blueprints. Each blueprint will identify the actions, resources and strategic priorities most relevant to that environment, while ensuring that all members are represented in SIR’s long-term strategy.”