Radiation Dose Management is Critical to Patient Safety

Written by Ronny Bachrach on January 13, 2015. Posted in Digital Radiography and PACS, DR Upgrades, Hardware

With campaigns like Image Wisely geared toward radiologists, health care providers are doing their best to reduce patient exposure to radiation doses. X-rays and other modalities can be harmful if repeated frequently, leading many practices to adopt better protocols for dose management.

Why is it a priority?
According to Hospitals and Health Networks, technological advancements in diagnostic imaging have changed patient care. Providers from all specialties have allocated resources to enhance clinical decision-making and deliver better services to their respective populations. However, radiation exposure is still at the top of many facilities' lists of processes to improve.

This is where radiation dose management can provide a systematic approach to tracking, reporting and monitoring exposure throughout the imaging center. The ultimate goal is to eliminate any unnecessary exposure and develop processes that help ensure the right test is performed for each patient.

"The goal is to match the image quality based on the clinical indication and the individual patient based on body size and weight, among other things," said Dushyant Sahani, M.D., director of CT for Massachusetts General Hospital, quoted by the source.

While many providers understand the importance of dose management, the key is educating and training all stakeholders to follow the right steps. Staff members need to be made aware of the risks of radiation overexposure, especially with the recent announcement from ECRI Institute.

Adding to the list of dangers
AuntMinnie.com reported that the risk of radiation dose creep, which involves the slow increase of exposure during digital X-ray studies, has found its way onto a list of health care hazards published by research organization ECRI Institute.

Previously, overall exposure to radiation ranked third on the 2013 list, but the shift toward digital radiography has caused an increase in the threat of dose creep. The trouble is that newer X-ray equipment produces higher quality images with elevated doses of radiation. While this helps reduce repeated exams, the increased radiation poses a significant risk to patients.

To help prevent dose creep, more X-ray developers are standardizing the use of exposure indices to monitor and report radiation levels. When radiologists and technicians begin preparing for a scan, they can review patient data from previous exams to ensure doses are not elevated. While replacing systems that lack exposure indices might not be fiscally plausible, providers can purchase software upgrades to add the platform to existing programs.

Contact Viztek for more information.

Ronny Bachrach

Ronny Bachrach

Marketing Director at Viztek LLC
Responsible for all marketing activities including, press, advertising, trade show coordination, website management, dealer and customer communications.
Ronny Bachrach
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