Page 28 - Diagnostic Radiology - Interpreting the Risks Part One

SVMIC Diagnostic Radiology: Interpreting the Risks

difficult, to contact a responsible party for a patient who has

been discharged from the emergency department.

RADIOLOGY PRO-TIPS

What should radiologists do when the referring provider
is not readily available? First, make the effort to call

the provider; if he or she is not available but a nurse or
secretary is, give that person the report and instruct the

person to pass it on to the provider – and then, document
what you did (including the staff person’s name) in the

radiology report (1st choice) or in a separate log kept in the
radiology department (2nd choice). If no one is available,

the radiologist has a dilemma: the radiologist should try
to either reach the provider later the same day or the

following day (depending on the finding), or, if that is not
feasible, the radiologist should inform the patient directly

that something serious is wrong and that the
patient should contact his or her provider

and/or go directly to the nearest emergency
department. Any such dialogue should be

well-documented.

When it comes to the timing of the report’s preparation, many

potential problems are avoided if the report is generated
immediately, possibly with the use of voice-recognition

reporting, while the case is being reviewed with the study

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