Current Status of the clinical role in Spanish interventional radiology: An online survey among the Spanish Society of Vascular and Interventional Radiology (SERVEI) members.

PURPOSE

This work aims to provide an overview of the current reality of clinical practice in interventional radiology in Spain, evaluating clinical activity, interventional radiologists' opinion on the importance of playing a proactive clinical role, and the barriers they encounter in doing so.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The study was based on an 18-question survey divided into four categories: general aspects, clinical activity, opinion on a proactive clinical role, and barriers. The questionnaire, validated by the Spanish Society of Vascular and Interventional Radiology (SERVEI), was distributed to all members (n = 483) via email. A descriptive statistical analysis was performed.

RESULTS

The response rate was 26.5% (128/483). A total of 44.5% (57/128) had admitting privileges, 70.3% (90/128) had consultations, 32.8% (42/128) did ward rounds, and 94.5% (121/128) participated in multidisciplinary committees. Most spent just 0%-10% of their workday on clinical activity. A total of 43.7% (56/128) reported providing longitudinal care for their patients. On a Likert scale from 1 to 10, the importance of performing pre-procedural consultations was rated a mean of 8.3 (IQR: 10-8), post-procedural consultations 8.1 (IQR: 10-7), and care during hospitalization 7.7 (IQR: 10-6). The main obstacles were a lack of time/excessive workload and inadequate professional resources.

CONCLUSIONS

Spanish interventional radiologists demonstrated a clear awareness of the importance of providing longitudinal patient care. However, they reported only partially taking on the clinical responsibilities for the patients they treated.