Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2011;2(1):33-7.

Transition to computed radiography: can emergency medicine doctors accurately predict the need of film printing to facilitate optimal patient care?

Siu Ming Yang  1 , Chor Man Lo  1
Affiliations

Transition to computed radiography: can emergency medicine doctors accurately predict the need of film printing to facilitate optimal patient care?

Siu Ming Yang et al. World J Emerg Med. 2011.

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to evaluate emergency medicine doctors' accuracy in predicting the need of film printing in a simulated setting of computed radiography and assess whether this can facilitate optimal patient care.

Methods: Cross sectional study was conducted from 20 March 2009 to 3 April 2009 in 1334 patients. After clinical assessment of those patients who needed X-ray examination, doctors in the emergency department would indicate whether film printing was necessary for subsequent patient care in a simulated computed radiography setting. The final discharge plan was then retrieved from each patient record. Accuracy of doctors' prediction was calculated by comparing the initial request for radiographic film printing and the final need of film. Doctors with different level of emergency medicine experience would also be analyzed and compared.

Results: The sensitivity of predicting film printing was 84.5% and the specificity of predicting no film printing was 91.2%. Positive predictive value was 88.4% while negative predictive value was 88.2%. The overall accuracy was 88.2%. The accuracy of doctors stratified into groups of fellows, higher trainees and basic trainees were 85.4%, 90.5% and 88.5% respectively (P=0.073).

Conclusions: Our study showed that doctors can reliably predict whether film printing is needed after clinical assessment of patients, before actual image viewing. Advanced indication for film printing at the time of imaging request for selected patients can save time for all parties with minimal wastage.

Keywords: Computed tomography X-ray; Emergencies; Forecasting; Radiographic image enhancement.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest: The authors declare that there are not any financial interests or potential conflicts of interest relating to the manuscript.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The detailed working flowchart of a computed radiography examination
Figure 2
Figure 2
The additional work-steps required when film printing is requested after image is available to emergency physicians
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Bansal GJ. Digital radiography. A comparison with modern conventional imaging. Postgrad Med J. 2006;82:425–428. - PMC - PubMed
    1. May GA, Deer DD, Dackiewicz D. Impact of digital radiography on clinical workflow. J Digit Imaging. 2000;13:76–78. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Andriole KP. Productivity and cost assessment of computed radiography, digital radiography, and screen-film for outpatient chest examinations. J Digit Imaging. 2002;15:161–169. Epub 2003 Jan 21. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Reiner BI, Siegel EL. Technologists’ productivity when using PACS: comparison of film-based versus filmless radiography. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2002;179:33–37. - PubMed
    1. Mariani C, Tronchi A, Oncini L, Pirani O, Murri R. Analysis of the X-ray work flow in two diagnostic imaging departments with and without a RIS/PACS system. J Digit Imaging. 2006;19(Suppl 1):18–28. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources