Curbside radiology consults: how does the time allotted for review, level of training, and subspecialization affect interpretation accuracy?
The interpretation accuracy of resident and attending radiologists was assessed based on time allotted for study review, level of training, and subspecialization. Twelve cases were presented in a time-constrained and a time-unconstrained fashion to eight residents and six attendings. Overall, timed and untimed diagnostic accuracy was similar for all groups tested. Attendings sometimes performed worse than residents and in-field attendings when reviewing out-of-field studies. Residents often had greater specialty-specific accuracy than out-of-field attendings. Residents are capable of providing accurate "curbside" consultations to referring clinicians even under time-constrained conditions. Highly subspecialized attending radiologists should be cognizant of their out-of-field limitations.
Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 1161 21st Avenue South, MCN CCC-1121, Nashville, TN 37232-2675. Electronic address: martin.jordanov@vanderbilt.edu.
Martin
M
Jordanov
Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 1161 21st Avenue South, MCN CCC-1121, Nashville, TN 37232-2675. Electronic address: jana.a.bregman@vanderbilt.edu.
Jana
J
Bregman
Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 1161 21st Avenue South, MCN CCC-1121, Nashville, TN 37232-2675. Electronic address: kathleen.c.weber@vanderbilt.edu.
Kathleen
K
Montgomery
Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 1161 21st Avenue South, MCN CCC-1121, Nashville, TN 37232-2675. Electronic address: mark.heidel@vanderbilt.edu.
Mark
M
Heidel
D002983:Clinical Competence; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005257:Fellowships and Scholarships; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D011872:Radiology Department, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D013038:Specialization; D013997:Time Factors
Clinical management; Interpretation accuracy; Interpretation discordance; Patient care; Radiology consultation