Quality

The focus of quality improvement in healthcare is to bolster performance and processes related to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Leaders in this space also ensure the proper selection of imaging exams and procedures, and monitor the safety of services, among other duties. Reimbursement programs such as the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) utilize financial incentives to improve quality. This also includes setting and maintaining care quality initiatives, such as the requirements set by the Joint Commission.

Radiology group cyberattack exposes private info of over 150,000 patients
The information exposed during the attack included names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers and service charges.
Hospital redesigns radiology 2nd opinion service, scoring 92% collection success rate
OSU Medical Center has addressed common challenges including insufficient documentation, miscommunication, and the risk of repeat imaging.
Experts share recipe to reduce radiologist recommendations for unnecessary extra imaging
Education and other initiatives helped cut the rate of radiologist recommendations for additional imaging by 44% compared to a control site.
The top 25 heart hospitals in the United States
Newsweek and Statista have crunched the data and ranked the top U.S. hospitals for cardiac care. Did your facility make the cut?
Death from heart disease more common in rural areas—what can cardiologists do?
Rishi Wadhera, MD, detailed new data that show how socioeconomic factors are driving cardiovascular death rates, especially in younger adults.

55% of hospitals earn payment bump through value-based purchasing

Just 55 percent of hospitals will earn a payment increase under the Medicare value-based purchasing program in 2019, according to CMS.

RSNA 2018: Researchers see value in mammography screening at age 30 for some women

Annual mammography screening beginning at age 30 may provide value to patients with dense breast tissue, a personal history of breast cancer or a family history of breast cancer, according to new research presented at RSNA 2018 in Chicago.

Why the sounds within a radiology department are so important

Despite hospitals’ attempts to calm patients with music, relaxing imagery and even virtual reality, research continues to support the fact that excess noise in the doctor’s office increases patients’ anxiety levels, worsening healthcare outcomes and degrading a provider's quality of care.

Modest radiation dose reduction leads to inferior CT detection of liver lesions

CT evaluation of colorectal liver metastases was less effective after reducing the radiation dose by more than 50 percent, according to new findings published in Radiology.

Cardiac CT analysis facilitates safe valve implantation in patients with CHD

CT analysis prior to percutaneous pulmonary valve implantation (PPVI) in patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) could help physicians detect which individuals are at the greatest risk for coronary artery compression (CC) during the procedure, according to research published ahead of print in the European Journal of Radiology.

What simulation models can teach us about treating ground-glass nodules

Healthcare providers should consider updating their follow-up interval for patients with ground-glass nodules (GGNs) detected on CT exams to three years, according to new research published in Radiology.

ACR unveils new QC manual focused on digital mammography, DBT

The 2018 American College of Radiology (ACR) Digital Mammography Quality Control Manual with Digital Breast Tomosynthesis (DBT) is now available online, the ACR announced this week.

Humana, Kaiser have highest customer satisfaction ratings

Humana and Kaiser Permanente were the two health insurance providers with the highest customer satisfaction scores, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) Financial & Insurance Report 2018.

Quality

Radiology group cyberattack exposes private info of over 150,000 patients

Hospital redesigns radiology 2nd opinion service, scoring 92% collection success rate

Experts share recipe to reduce radiologist recommendations for unnecessary extra imaging

The top 25 heart hospitals in the United States

Death from heart disease more common in rural areas—what can cardiologists do?