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.

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4 accused of $200M insurance fraud in kickback scheme

Individuals from Mississippi were indicted for defrauding insurance companies for $200 million with high-priced compounded formulations and bribing providers—including dentists, physicians and nurse practitioners—to prescribe those medications to patients they never examined.

Pennsylvania nurse calls for better self-care among those in an overworked population

Most American nurses put their patients’ health and safety above their own, potentially impacting patient care, one Pennsylvania nurse wrote in the Journal of Radiology Nursing this month.

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How radiology program directors use real-time recruitment data to cut costs, predict residency match outcomes

Real-time and historical recruitment data published ahead of resident match season can help radiology program directors limit their application and recruitment costs, but the same statistics are largely ignored by medical students themselves, a report published in Academic Radiology this month suggests.

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Dose-tracking software improves quality of interventional procedures

Introducing a dose-monitoring software to procedures in interventional and neuro-interventional radiology could be useful for tracking patient radiation thresholds and improving procedural performance, Brandon C. Perry, MD, and colleagues at the University of Washington have reported in Academic Radiology. 

Breast cancer patients report less pain, itching during radiotherapy when using barrier film

Breast cancer patients report reduced sensitivity and pain during radiotherapy when using a barrier film over treatment areas, according to a Danish study published this month in Technical Innovations and Patient Support in Radiation Oncology.

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Why non-radiologists should lead radiology QA efforts

Quality assurance of radiological interpretations might be better left to non-radiologists, according to a group of researchers in Ann Arbor, Michigan, who recently found that one-third of radiology reports are discordant with other specialists’ opinions.

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How this Pennsylvania hospital prioritized patient flow with a $7M radiology renovation

Evangelical Community Hospital in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, recently poured $7 million into its Center for Orthopaedics, the Daily Item reported this week—and the radiology renovation is prioritizing patient flow when many imagers are struggling to keep up with an increasing demand for their work.

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Want to shore up Medicare's hospital insurance fund? Raise payroll taxes by 28%

CMS recently announced Medicare’s hospital insurance (HI) fund will be depleted by 2026—three years earlier than previously projected. A new report from the American Academy of Actuaries examined the numbers—finding eliminating the HI deficit would require an immediate 28 percent increase in standard payroll taxes.