Radiology, Manor Hospital, Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, Moat Road, Walsall West Midlands, WS2 9PS, UK.
Radiology, Manor Hospital, Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, Moat Road, Walsall West Midlands, WS2 9PS, UK.
Radiography (Lond). 2021 Nov;27(4):1006-1013. doi: 10.1016/j.radi.2021.03.006. Epub 2021 Apr 17.
The chest x-ray (CXR) is the most commonly performed x-ray examination in England, UK. Reporting radiographers provide a cost-effective and safe solution for managing CXR backlogs, but not all Trusts support this service development. This study aimed to establish the service enablers and challenges associated with training and employing radiographers to report CXR images in acute hospital sites in England, UK.
Approval for this electronic survey was granted in 84 of 146 (58%) Trusts approached. The survey was open for 10 weeks during August to October 2020, comprising of qualitative and quantitative questions. Data was exported in to an Excel spreadsheet where manual thematic analysis was performed. Descriptive statistics were also generated.
Sample size was 75 (89% response rate). Thirty-three departments (44%) had at least one trainee. Most departments (n = 53, 71%) employ at least one CXR reporting radiographer. A total of 121/160 (76%) radiographers report CXRs. Number of reporting sessions shows progression. Factors enabling training and employment arise from service improvements, financial pressures, and developing the workforce. The main challenges relate to staffing issues with a number of associated sub-themes. A small faction indicated lack of radiographer interest to report CXRs due to litigation worries; possibly uncovering a new and emerging issue.
Enablers and challenges associated with radiographers reporting CXRs are similar to previous studies. The growth of CXR reporting radiographers and reporting sessions indicates a continuing reliance on radiographers to contributing to managing CXR backlogs.
It is recommended that potential trainees are explicitly informed of the legal protection that will be provided, to prevent accountability concerns impacting on the continuing progression in this area of advanced practice.
胸部 X 光（CXR）是英国英格兰最常进行的 X 光检查。报告放射技师为管理 CXR 积压提供了一种具有成本效益且安全的解决方案，但并非所有信托基金都支持这项服务的发展。本研究旨在确定与培训和雇用放射技师在英国英格兰的急症医院现场报告 CXR 图像相关的服务促成因素和挑战。
在 146 个联系的信托基金中，有 84 个（58%）获得了对此电子调查的批准。该调查于 2020 年 8 月至 10 月期间开放了 10 周，包含定性和定量问题。数据导出到 Excel 电子表格中，然后在其中执行手动主题分析。还生成了描述性统计数据。
样本量为 75 名（89%的回复率）。有 33 个部门（44%）至少有一名受训者。大多数部门（n=53，71%）至少雇用一名 CXR 报告放射技师。共有 121/160（76%）名放射技师报告 CXR。报告会议的次数显示出进展。培训和就业的促成因素来自于服务改进、财务压力和发展劳动力。主要挑战与人员配备问题有关，并有许多相关的子主题。一小部分人表示，由于担心诉讼，放射技师对报告 CXR 不感兴趣；这可能揭示了一个新的和正在出现的问题。
与以前的研究相比，放射技师报告 CXR 的促成因素和挑战相似。CXR 报告放射技师和报告会议的增加表明，继续依赖放射技师来帮助管理 CXR 积压。
建议明确告知潜在的受训者将提供的法律保护，以防止责任担忧影响该高级实践领域的持续发展。
