title: Assessment of the appropriateness of requested radiological examinations for outpatients and the potential financial consequences of guideline application.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether requested radiological examinations for referred outpatients are in concordance with the guidelines as proposed by the consilium radiologicum. A second purpose was to evaluate the financial effect of strict guideline application. The radiological requests for 1000 referrals were evaluated by 2 radiologists. A consensus score of 74.4% guideline conformity was reached. A mean save of 9.5 Euro per patient was calculated after strict guideline application. It is concluded that guidelines are a valuable tool for patient management in referring for radiological examinations and have a substantial effect on the available budget. Further improvements and fine-tuning of the guidelines are mandatory to increase their validity.
authors.affiliation: Eurad Consult International Teleradiology Centre, Generaal DeWittelaan 9/10, 2800 Mechelen, Belgium.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Van Breuseghem
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Geusens
mesh_terms: D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000191:economics; D002017:Budgets; D017046:Cost Savings; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000191:economics; D005194:Family Practice; D005376:Financial Management; D019983:Guideline Adherence / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000191:economics; D008327:Mammography / Q000191:economics; D008511:Medicine; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011859:Radiography / Q000191:economics; D011871:Radiology / Q000191:economics; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000191:economics; D013038:Specialization; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000191:economics; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000191:economics