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John W. Mitchell, Senior Correspondent | December 14, 2021
From the January/February 2022 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
"If my CT manager said I cut out all repeats, that's probably not a good idea," he said.
For example, when it comes to virtual colonoscopy, at UMW they often take multiple scans to make sure the colon is fully distended.
To reduce avoidable repeat scans, he and his team did a study on 30,000 CT scans and found a 40% increase in time associated with same visit repeat scans. Szczkutowicz cites several areas for improvement:
Track all repeats: This includes both unexpected repeats and those that are planned. A good baseline of data is required with which to measure progress.
Identify poor protocols that contribute to poor workflow: If a protocol is not fine-tuned or even has a bug and scans take too long, for example, the diagnostic utility of the scan decreases. This hinders a physician’s ability to diagnose and treat.
Poor training: This can be a short-term problem when a vendor introduces new “bells and whistles” for a scanner. Any operator scan errors lead to increased patient dissatisfaction.
Poor protocol instructions: For example, were the tip of the nose, ear lobes, or top of the head clipped off during a head scan? Lack of this view can hinder robotic surgery.
Issue with contrast delivery: Needle size and flow rates can cause contrast to be less than optimal for a scan, requiring more contrast — which in recent years is a well-documented patient safety factor.
“I've got a really good team, and they put in a lot of … time to make sure that those things are in the program, and that's really essential if you want to do these things well," Szczkutowicz said.
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