Out-of-hours MRI provision in the UK and models of service delivery.
OBJECTIVE
To examine current out-of-hours magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provision through a snapshot survey of National Health Service (NHS) trusts and to assay how radiographer staffing cover was provided for out-of-hours services.


METHODS
A snapshot postal survey was mailed to heads of service of all 234 trusts in England and Wales. A literature search on the models of service delivery and correlation with the authors' internal MRI rota, which has provided a full on-call service for 20 years was undertaken.


RESULTS
The response rate was 45.7% (107 of 234); 14% of responders provided full access to MRI 24 h a day; 63% provided extended weekday service, typically to 20.00 h; and 81% provided a weekend daytime service. The radiographers running the service were typically from the core MRI team. Approximately one-third (29.9%) of trusts provided training in basic brain and spine MRI to non-core MRI team members, but they typically did not participate in out-of-hours provision.


CONCLUSIONS
There is currently a paucity of information on the provision of out-of-hours MRI in the NHS. However, there is increasing pressure to provide complex imaging out of hours, and in the future, trauma centres may be required to provide MRI to assess spinal injury. The authors describe a system to provide access to MRI at no additional cost to the organization based on 20 years of experience. A minority of surveyed acute NHS trusts have full out-of-hours access to MRI. Demand for MRI provision out of core hours is likely to increase.
Radiology Department, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK.
J
J
Hauptfleisch
T M
TM
Meagher
D
D
King
L
L
López de Heredia
R J
RJ
Hughes
D039602:After-Hours Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004739:England; D019538:Health Care Surveys / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013222:State Medicine / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom; D014852:Wales