Neuroimaging clinics of North America
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Neuroimaging Clin. N. Am. · Aug 2012
ReviewAccountable care organizations for neuroradiologists: threats and opportunities.
Accountable care organizations (ACOs) are one of the more interesting and (perhaps) highest impact components of the 2010 Federal health care bill. Neuroradiologists should examine them carefully for opportunities to participate and contribute to ACOs as well as to understand the potential threats. ⋯ All specialists should pay close attention to the evolution of ACOs. It seems likely that many of their features will come to pass during the coming decades with substantial impact on the profession.
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Neuroimaging Clin. N. Am. · Aug 2012
Review Comparative StudyCombating overutilization: radiology benefits managers versus order entry decision support.
Radiology benefits managers (RBMs) and computerized decision support offer different advantages and disadvantages in the efforts to provide appropriate use of radiology resources. RBMs are effective in their hard-stop ability to reject inappropriate studies, incur a significant cost, and interpose an intermediary between patient and physician. Decision support is a more friendly educational product, but has not been implemented for all clinical indications and its efficacy is still being studied.
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The content and prose method of radiology reporting has remained essentially unchanged for more than 100 years. By leveraging current technologies, the radiology report has the potential to be a multifunctional document providing information in a number of areas including business analytics, quality assurance and safety, regulatory reporting, research and billing. Maturation and adoption of speech recognition, the development of radiology controlled terminologies and standardized reporting templates now allow for the introduction of structured reporting into the clinical setting.
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A conflict of interest occurs when an outside interest influences professional decisions regarding patient care, education, or research. It is important to recognize conflicts of interest and to report significant financial interests to the appropriate institutional official. When a significant financial interest conflicts with human subjects research, the investigator is typically prohibited from participating in the research. If the conflict does not affect human subjects research, in some instances a conflict of interest management plan can be developed that allows continued participation in the research.
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Strategic planning is becoming essential to neuroradiology as the health care environment continues to emphasize cost efficiency, teamwork and collaboration. A strategic plan begins with a mission statement and vision of where the neuroradiology division would like to be in the near future. Formalized strategic planning frameworks, such as the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT), and the Balanced Scorecard frameworks, can help neuroradiology divisions determine their current position in the marketplace. Communication, delegation, and accountability in neuroradiology is essential in executing an effective strategic plan.