Increased trend of unnecessary use of radiological diagnostic modalities in Pakistan: radiologists perspective.
| Title: | Increased trend of unnecessary use of radiological diagnostic modalities in Pakistan: radiologists perspective. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Javed H; Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan Medical College, Shaikh Zayed Postgraduate Medical Institute, Shaikh Zayed Medical Complex, Lahore, Pakistan.; Imran M; Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan Medical College, Shaikh Zayed Postgraduate Medical Institute, Shaikh Zayed Medical Complex, Lahore, Pakistan.; Nazir QU; Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan Medical College, Shaikh Zayed Postgraduate Medical Institute, Shaikh Zayed Medical Complex, Lahore, Pakistan.; Fatima I; Institute of Quality Management, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.; Humayun A; Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan Medical College, Shaikh Zayed Postgraduate Medical Institute, Shaikh Zayed Medical Complex, Lahore, Pakistan. |
| Source: | International journal for quality in health care : journal of the International Society for Quality in Health Care [Int J Qual Health Care] 2019 Nov 30; Vol. 31 (9), pp. 712-716. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Oxford University Press Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 9434628 Publication Model: Print Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1464-3677 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 13534505 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Int J Qual Health Care Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: Oxford : Oxford University Press; Original Publication: Kidlington, Oxford, UK ; Tarrytown, NY : Pergamon, c1994- |
| MeSH Terms: | Radiologists* ; Radiology*; Diagnostic Imaging/*trends ; Unnecessary Procedures/*trends; Attitude of Health Personnel ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Humans ; Pakistan ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Tertiary Care Centers |
| Abstract: | Background: Over the past few years, a significant overuse of radiological investigations influenced the quality and cost of healthcare of the country as it may lead to non-compliance of the patient due to non-affordability and also may harm the patient in terms of radiation hazards. Pakistan, being a low-income, resource-constraint country, is facing financial impact on families as well as health system due to multiple reasons.; Objectives: The purpose of study is to identify reasons of unnecessary use of radiological diagnostic modalities in Pakistani hospitals as perceived by radiologists.; Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on a total of all 105 radiologists, having at least 1 year experience of working in radiology, working in five tertiary care hospitals in Lahore. A self-constructed, self-administered, pretested 5-point Likert scale opinion-based questionnaire was administered after taking informed consent. It includes questions about excessive radiological use that may be attributed to the physicians, investigations, patients and other non-categorized causes. Results were analyzed using SPSS version 23.; Results: Since the assessment forms were handed over and collected from the radiologists in person, the response rate was 100%. Of a total of 105 respondents, 78 (74.28%) respondentsagreed that there is an actual increase, 25 (23.80%) respondents disagreed and 2 (1.90%) respondents were unsure. Most important reasons for increased usage of radiological investigations are 'need of accuracy of diagnosis' (P = 0.009), 'trend of physicians to repeat tests in order to confirm preset diagnoses' (P-value = 0.03), 'lack of knowledge about proper usage of radiological advances' (P-value = 0.005) and 'lack of proper clinical examination' (P-value = 0.04).; Conclusion: Unnecessary use of radiological investigations is actually there as perceived by radiologists, which is attributed to inadequate knowledge, attitude and training of physicians to refer patients to radiological resources. This research can be a stepping stone for future researchers as it can be used for elaborating these causes individually and finding ways as to how each of these causes can be controlled and minimized to bring about a decline in excessive usage of these modalities for the betterment of the patients.; (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press in association with the International Society for Quality in Health Care. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.) |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: radiological investigations; radiologists; tertiary care hospitals; unnecessary investigations |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20181127 Date Completed: 20200610 Latest Revision: 20200610 |
| Update Code: | 20260130 |
| DOI: | 10.1093/intqhc/mzy234 |
| PMID: | 30476150 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
Journal Article