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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Low mammography quality leads to more false positives, less comfort for women

Low mammography quality has been linked to an increase in false positives, Canadian radiologists reported this month. Such a decrease in standard of care could be compromising patient comfort during an already-disconcerting procedure.

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Postmortem CT angiography trumps autopsy in identifying cause of death

CT angiography could be improving the quality of postmortem diagnosis, researchers reported in Radiology this week—but the tool isn’t often used in the autopsy room.

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When radiologists can easily report issues with image quality, the entire practice benefits

Implementing a workflow-integrated program that helps radiologists provide feedback to technologists can increase radiologist engagement and help a practice identify and address ongoing issues, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology.

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Palliative radiation improves life for terminal lung cancer patients—but how much is too much?

More than a third of patients diagnosed with terminal lung cancer undergo palliative radiation therapy that can improve their quality of life, but more than half of those individuals could be experiencing overtreatment, researchers reported this month.

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Getting better with age: Older surgeons have lower patient mortality rates

The older a surgeon gets, the lower the patient mortality rate, with female surgeons in their 50s having the lowest rates overall, according to research led by Yusuke Tsugawa, MD, MPH, PhD, assistant professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.

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58% of hospitals earn A or B in latest safety report from Leapfrog

The Leapfrog Group’s 2018 Hospital Safety Grades found that a handful of facilities have made major strides in reducing infection rates and deaths due to error. Of the 2,500 hospitals examined, 89 receiving an A this year had previously been rated as a D or F.

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Patient navigation ensures quality healthcare for uninsured minorities

Navigation programs aimed at breast and colorectal cancer patients could provide an enduring link to the healthcare system while boosting screening rates—but the added expenses of such a program mean clinicians will likely need to gear that care toward a select few, research published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology suggests.

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Partial breast irradiation dials down exposure while maintaining quality of life

Low-risk breast cancer patients who opt for accelerated partial breast irradiation—a one-week alternative to traditional whole-breast radiotherapy—see the same quality of life as women who undergo conventional treatment, researchers reported at this year’s European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) Congress.