title: Radiology Research in Quality and Safety: Current Trends and Future Needs.
abstract: Promoting quality and safety research is now essential for radiology as reimbursement is increasingly tied to measures of quality, patient safety, efficiency, and appropriateness of imaging. This article provides an overview of key features necessary to promote successful quality improvement efforts in radiology. Emphasis is given to current trends and future opportunities for directing research. Establishing and maintaining a culture of safety is paramount to organizations wishing to improve patient care. The correct culture must be in place to support quality initiatives and create accountability for patient care. Focused educational curricula are necessary to teach quality and safety-related skills and behaviors to trainees, staff members, and physicians. The increasingly complex healthcare landscape requires that organizations build effective data infrastructures to support quality and safety research. Incident reporting systems designed specifically for medical imaging will benefit quality improvement initiatives by identifying and learning from system errors, enhancing knowledge about safety, and creating safer systems through the implementation of standardized practices and standards. Finally, validated performance measures must be developed to accurately reflect the value of the care we provide for our patients and referring providers. Common metrics used in radiology are reviewed with focus on current and future opportunities for investigation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Emory University Hospital Midtown, 550 Peachtree St, Atlanta, Georgia 30308. Electronic address: mzygmon@emory.edu.
authors.forename: Matthew E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Zygmont
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia.
authors.forename: Jason N
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Itri
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, NYU School of Medicine, New York, New York.
authors.forename: Andrew B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Rosenkrantz
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Emory University Hospital, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Phuong-Anh T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Duong
authors.affiliation: Division of Abdominal Imaging and Intervention, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin.
authors.forename: Lori
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mankowski Gettle
authors.affiliation: Abdominal and Cross-Sectional Interventional Radiology, University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, Michigan.
authors.forename: Mishal
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mendiratta-Lala
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: Elena P
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Scali
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Division of Interventional Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine/New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, New York.
authors.forename: Ronald S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Winokur
authors.affiliation: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Department of Medical Imaging, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Probyn
authors.affiliation: Harrington Healthcare System, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Justin W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Kung
authors.affiliation: Lean Six Sigma, UPMC Health Plan, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bakow
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Nadja
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kadom
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D061214:Patient Safety / Q000592:standards*; D058996:Quality Improvement / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D011871:Radiology / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D012106:Research / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends
keywords: Culture of Safety; Performance Metrics; Quality and Safety Research