Dear Imaging Center Insider,
Malpractice claims against radiologists in the U.S. are an enduring and pervasive problem, according to Dr. Stephen Baker of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in Newark. In research presented at the RSNA conference in Chicago earlier this month, an analysis of a preferred provider organization's (PPO) records showed that one in three of its affiliated radiologists had a malpractice claim in his or her history.
The researchers examined the records of radiologists affiliated with Parsippany, NJ-based One Call Medical. The PPO has about 5,000 affiliated physicians, and represents approximately 14% to 15% of all radiologists in the U.S., according to Baker.
The team analyzed the data for five elements, and found that more than half of the claims filed against the radiologists involved a failure to diagnose. Among these claims, the four leading causes were breast disease misinterpretation, failure to diagnose cancer, missed fractures, and failure to recognize an acute vascular condition, Baker said.
Interestingly, the researchers found that the overall frequency of claims against radiologists is not appreciably increasing over time, despite a dramatic increase in the total number of imaging studies performed. They also discovered that only 21 of the more than 3,000 suits filed were because of failure to do an additional imaging test.
The study examined the likelihood of a claim being filed against a radiologist on a state-by-state basis as well, and scrutinized gender differences regarding the likelihood of malpractice on the basis of claims per radiologist and claims per exam performed.
If you'd like to find out more about this landmark malpractice study, click here. As an AuntMinnie.com Imaging Center Insider, you have access to this story days before the rest of our members.
In other news, be sure to check out our coverage of imaging center and practice management topics from the 2004 RSNA conference. The AuntMinnie staff reported on a variety of subjects from patient identification and throughput, outsourcing, teleradiology, PACS, and report-signing delays to successfully marketing an academic-based imaging center.
