Teleradiology

Author

Section Editor-in-Chief – IMAGING

Prof.Lluís Donoso Bach

Teleradiology and telemedicine are the focus of our cover story. Teleradiology is a growing business, and whether you think it is the solution to uneven provision or part of the problem of commoditisation of radiolog y, it certainly deserves attention. Provision and regulation of teleradiology vary widely across Europe and across the world. However, quality is paramount. Neelam Dugar (page 8) explains the need in teleradiology for radiology reporting standards, and evaluation by referring doctors and patients. Jan Schillebeeckx (page 10) outlines the legal aspects of telemedicine in Europe, and observes that existing European regulation is complex but clear. Mark-Christopher Spoerl and colleagues ( page 14) w rite a bout a telemedicine project in the Euroregion Pomerania. Their analysis compared the costs of physicians travelling physically to another hospital for a tumour board with the costs of teleconferences. Roberto Grassi and Francesca Iacobellis (page 18) delineate the key aspects of quality assurance in teleradiology. Nadine Koff and David Koff (page 20) look at the opportunities and barriers to teleradiology in Canada and the development of collaborative and quality control solutions.

Our IMAGING Insights section focuses on s everal k ey a reas f or r adiologists: decision support, breast imaging, workload, redesigning services and peer review. The innovative Khresmoi project, detailed by Dimitris Markonis and colleagues, has developed a visual search engine, which also searches the open access medical literature for immediate decision support (page 23). Stephen Baker (page 25) considers the advantages of onsite radiology consultation. Oguz D icle w rites a bout w orkload i n radiology on page 26. Dan Conley reviews the clinical applications of ShearWave™ elastography on page 29.

Frost & Sullivan provide an overview of breast imaging modalities on page 30. Mathias Goyen (page 32) discusses the promise of automated breast ultrasound as a adjunct to mammography for detecting cancers in dense breasts in particular.

L au ra C oombs describes t he American College of Radiology’s Dose Index Registry (page 33), a key tool for improving patient care. Denis Remedios (page 36) provides an update on international initiatives on referral guidelines. Hans-Peter Busch (page 38) explains the role of clinical treatment processes in optimising effectiveness of the radiology service. On page 42 Stephen Brown and Thomas Gallagher are the interviewees on error disclosure in radiology. Daniel Boxer (page 43) recounts the introduction of a dedicated radiology service for acute hospital care. David Kof f and Nadine Kof f (page 44) explain the Canadian response to a ‘perfect storm’ of radiology reviews, which crossed Canada when errors in radiology reports were discovered.

In our IT Intelligence section (page 46) Ortiga et al. examine the use of electronic health records (EHR) in Spain. The three most cited facilitators for EHR implementation were the possibility to hire technical support during the implementation and afterwards, security certification warranty and objective third-party evaluations of EHR products.

In Management Mat ters, A xel Fudickar (page 49) describes the WHO Surgical S afety C hecklist, w hich h as proven value as a risk management tool in the perioperative setting. Fudickar argues that it goes beyond checking of important items, but has ramifications for communication, leadership, teambuilding and more. Agnete

Nielsen and colleagues (page 50) write about the purpose and success of plastic organic groups in reshaping and making radiology services more efficient in their hospital.

In Interventions, Jonathan Moss (page 51) looks at the great promise of renal denervation. Leo Lawler and colleagues (page 53) explain two interventional radiology therapies for stroke – direct intra-arterial thrombolysis and intra-arterial mechanical thrombectomy.

In Perspectives, the focus begins with nuclear medicine (page 55) and an interview with the President of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine, Professor Fred Verzijlbergen and 2013 Congress President Professor Dominique Le Guludec. In addition, Editorial Board member Udo Sechtem is interviewed about cardiac imaging.

Our Countr y Focus (page 57) visits Russia, with an interview with prominent Russian radiologist and President of the European Congress of Radiology 2014 Chair Valentin Sinitsyn. This is followed by a look at radiology in South Korea.

Finally Datebook (page 62) includes a review of the recent highly successful Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiologic al Societ y of Europe congress and lists forthcoming congresses of interest.

You will notice that some articles in this issue are continued online. Please visit the link given to access the full articles, images and tables. 

If you have any comments or suggestions, please get in touch at: [email protected]

Register for free on our website at www.healthmanagement.org to share your views and receive updates.

Erratum