Article Spotlighting ACR Chairman, Inappropriate Imaging Carried in Large-Market Newspapers Nationwide
A recent Miami Herald article featuring James P. Borgstede, MD, chair of the ACR Board of Chancellors, as well as the patient safety issues and skyrocketing costs associated with inappropriate utilization of medical imaging procedures by nonradiologists, has been reprinted in the July 5 edition of several major newspapers nationwide, including the Charlotte (NC) Observer, Kansas City Star, and the St. Paul (Minn) Pioneer Press.
The article, written by Herald reporter John Dorschner, states "Medicare studies show…that in-office imaging by nonradiologists grew by 45% from 1998 to 2003 - and in Florida the use of CT-scans and MRIs by nonradiologists grew twice as fast as the national average for all providers."
"'I think some [nonradiologist] doctors view this as an entrepreneurial adventure," said Borgstede.
Indeed, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) shows that nonradiologists that perform their own imaging procedures are up to 7 times more likely to order tests than physicians with no financial interest in the facility to which they are referring patients. A recent Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri study indicated that as many as a 30% of imaging procedures done by nonradiologists are unnecessary.
Industry leaders quoted in the article echo these conclusions. ''When the doctors have an economic interest in the equipment, they do more,'' said David J. Soffa of American Imaging Management.
Of more concern, these in-office tests are often performed without the required skills and expertise of a trained, board-certified radiologist or certified nonphysician clinical personnel, on machines that are rarely, if ever, subject to any accreditation process or review by medical physicists to make sure that they are functioning properly. Peer-reviewed studies show that when nonradiologists conduct imaging scans, deficiencies in safeguarding patient safety and in the quality of the images themselves are 10 times more likely to occur. A recent study by a major insurer noted that many of these deficiencies could have "tragic" consequences for patients.
Borgstede addresses this by stating "We're very concerned about the costs, but more importantly, we're concerned about the quality when it's done by persons who aren't experts in this field."
Click here to read the Charlotte Observer version of the article in its entirety (free registration may be required).
Please visit www.QualityImaging.org for more information regarding quality, safety, and cost concerns associated with medical imaging performed by unqualified or lesser qualified providers.