Dear AuntMinnie Member,
We're pulling back the curtain this week on the candidates for the Minnies, AuntMinnie.com's annual event recognizing excellence in radiology.
This year's edition of the Minnies features more than 200 candidates in 15 categories, vying for top honors that range from Most Influential Radiology Researcher to Best New Radiology Vendor. This year, we've also added two new categories: Best Mobile Radiology App and Best Radiology Image. You can view all of the Minnies candidates by visiting minnies.auntminnie.com.
Minnies candidates were chosen through your nominations, but voting now moves to our expert panel, which will select two finalists in each category to face off in a final competition in the coming weeks. Winners will be announced in October.
The one exception is our Best Radiology Image category: We've posted all 12 competing images on our Facebook page, and you can view them by clicking here. Finalists in this category will be the images that get the most "likes" from our members.
So check them out now, and thanks to everyone who submitted nominations!
Thyroid US cuts biopsies
Is there any way to cut the number of unnecessary biopsies in patients who have suspicious thyroid nodules? A group from the University of California, San Francisco thinks there is.
A team led by Dr. Rebecca Smith-Bindman analyzed a set of three characteristics that could serve as clues to whether thyroid nodules are malignant or not. The theory was that if one or two characteristics were found on thyroid ultrasound scans, the nodules were more likely to be cancerous.
The group found that the hypothesis was indeed accurate in predicting malignancy, and if put into practice, it would reduce the number of biopsies required -- which could lead to fewer invasive procedures and lower healthcare costs. Find out which key characteristics could indicate malignancy by clicking here, or visit our Ultrasound Digital Community at ultrasound.auntminnie.com.
Curbing unruly docs
Chances are you've encountered them: disruptive physicians who cause chaos around themselves, alienating staff, other doctors, and even patients.
Well, disruptive physicians aren't just an annoyance, they're a major problem that can result in millions of dollars in costs to the healthcare system. That's according to a new study we're highlighting in our Residents Digital Community by Dr. James Rawson, of the Medical College of Georgia, and colleagues.
Dr. Rawson's team investigated the costs of disruptive behavior, and it wasn't a pretty picture. At one 400-bed hospital, costs exceeded $1 million in staff turnover and medication and procedural errors.
Learn more about the problem -- and what you can do to curb disruptive behavior at your facility -- by clicking here, or visit the Residents Digital Community at residents.auntminnie.com.
