From the January/February 2022 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine

The study was published in JAMA.

Shortage of nearly 2,000 radiologists hinders care in UK
In April, we reported that a 33% shortage of radiologists in the U.K. has left patients waiting in long lines to be scanned.
And it’s only projected to get worse by 2025 with a 44% shortfall, according to a Royal College of Radiology census, which estimates a need of 1,939 more radiologists in the NHS to meet pre-COVID-19 demand for scans.

Exacerbating the shortage is the departure of doctors who stayed on at the height of the pandemic, with 58% of hospital leaders saying they lack enough diagnostic and interventional radiologists to keep patients safe. In addition, 47% of NHS trusts and health boards report not having the staff or transfer arrangements to run safe 24/7 interventional radiology services.

While consultant numbers are increasing, they are not doing so fast enough, with waiting lists at record highs and backlogs for exams, such as MR and ultrasound, leaving thousands of patients waiting more than six weeks for a scan, according to the NHS. Stricter infection control and social distancing measures brought on by the pandemic have also made scanning slower.

RCR says radiologist staffing is at a “tipping point,” with the shortage threatening NHS recovery and patients facing “long, anxious and inevitable” waits for diagnoses and surgery.

Making matters worse is a poll of 1,089 radiology consultants in April that found 41% feeling moderately or severely demoralized in their jobs and 48% planning on working less after the past year. A fifth are considering leaving the NHS, while 12% are considering leaving in the next 12 months — a potential loss of 735 consultants and trainees nationwide.

To meet demand, the number of new radiologists being trained in the U.K. would have to triple from 300 to 900 training places annually, according to RCR.


Philips, CNIC partner to dramatically reduce cardiac MR acquisition time
Philips and the Spanish National Center for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC) teamed up in June to develop a new protocol that could make cardiac MR exams as short as a few minutes.

The technique, Enhanced SENSE by Static Outer-volume Subtraction (ESSOS), is expected to increase the viability of cardiac MR by improving patient comfort with shorter scan time, while still obtaining the same parameters as the usual technique. The approach reduces the time spent inside the machine by more than 90%, and decreases the need to have very experienced operators, something which could be relevant for nonacademic hospitals.

January/February 2022 Magazine

Read more stories from the January/February 2022 issue

More Magazine Features

CT Homepage