Tag: radiologist

Moral Distress in Radiology

Posted on by Brian Casey

The rising volume of medical imaging studies isn’t just a data point. It’s causing moral distress among radiologists and is a major systemic cause of the specialty’s burnout epidemic. 

Radiology’s problem with burnout is no secret, with a recent analysis disclosing that 54% of all radiologists identify as burned out. Studies have found that a cause of burnout can be moral distress, defined within healthcare as when a clinician knows the right course of action for a patient, but is prevented from taking it due to systemic factors.

In a March 22 study in American Journal of Roentgenology, researchers describe findings from a survey of 93 radiologists on their feelings of moral distress in different clinical scenarios and the impact it had on their careers. In short:

  • 98% reported some degree of moral distress
  • 48% thought the COVID-19 pandemic influenced their moral distress
  • 28% considered leaving their jobs
  • 18% actually did leave a job

Several factors contribute to moral distress in radiology: 

  • Case volumes that are higher than can be read safely
  • Higher case volumes that prevent resident teaching
  • A lack of action and support among administration

These latter issues lead to burnout in specific ways, the authors wrote. Institutional constraints to providing high-quality care can prompt physicians to spend more time at work. Error rates can also grow during shifts with high study volumes or that last longer than 10 hours. And orders for unnecessary imaging exams can be seen as disregard for professional expertise. 

The Takeaway

This study rips the Band-Aid off the burnout problem in radiology, pointing out that inexorably rising imaging volumes rather than bad bosses or lazy colleagues are a root cause, one that’s been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.  

A further implication is that no amount of “self-care” – often prescribed as a solution for burnout – will cure the problem in the long run as long as radiologists will have ever-growing worklists to return to after their sabbaticals and motivational staff meetings. The researchers recommended “urgent action” to address the issue.

Medical Students Return to Radiology

Posted on by Brian Casey

Medical students are flocking to apply to U.S. radiology residency programs, with diagnostic radiology seeing the most growth among nearly two-dozen medical specialties. The trend underscores the strong job market for radiologists.

The number of applications to diagnostic radiology residency programs has grown more than 10% a year over the past three years, according to an analysis by Dr. Francis Deng of Johns Hopkins Medicine. Deng has been tracking applicants for 23 medical specialties, and posted a now-viral table containing his analysis on March 13. 

The annual growth rates for diagnostic radiology and the related fields of radiation oncology and interventional radiology exceeded every other medical specialty for the past three years:

  • Diagnostic radiology: 10.5%
  • Radiation oncology: 8.9%
  • Interventional radiology: 6.8%

Diagnostic radiology’s growth is all the more intriguing given the decline it saw in residency applications from 2018 to 2020. Applications fell by 9.5% from 2,033 in 2018 to 1,839 in 2020, before rebounding to 2,409 applicants in 2023. 

What’s behind radiology’s rebound? RadTwitter offered multiple reasons:

  • Generational shifts in preference among medical students.
  • Medical students favoring “money or lifestyle over human interactions.”
  • Reduced worries about the impact of AI on radiologist jobs.
  • The trickle-down effect of a good job market.

RadTwitter pundit Dr. Saurabh Jha expanded on this latter point. A rising volume of imaging studies in the 2010s led to calls to expand the number of residency lots; these calls were ignored, leading to today’s scarcity of radiologists. 

Indeed, other data confirm his analysis. The ACR’s job board last year had the highest number of open radiologist positions ever, while recruiters have been flooding radiologists with job proposals for at least the last two years.

The Takeaway

The medical students entering radiology who celebrated Match Day on March 17 are likely to encounter a robust job market 5-6 years from now, as imaging volume grows while radiology residency slots remain static. Fear of AI’s impact on radiologist jobs appears to be receding, as evidenced by strong growth in radiology applications since 2020.  

Radiology in 2040

Posted on by Jake Fishman

A new Radiology Journal editorial shared a radical vision for how the specialty will operate in 2040, warning that “seismic” changes will require radiologists to overhaul their roles in order to thrive, or even stay relevant.

Here’s what the authors expect:

Super Reporting – Radiology reporting will become far more automatic and dynamic, as reports embrace multimedia formats, become far more accessible and patient-friendly, and integrate into automatic follow-up systems.

Disease Focus – The growth of at-home care and the emergence of mobile and self-examination imaging technologies will force radiology workflows to become organized by diseases, rather than by patients’ “location” (ED, ICU, etc.).

Inevitable AI – “AI will not replace radiology,” but it will “profoundly affect [radiologists’] relevance and workflow” as algorithms become more comprehensive, autonomous, and accurate.

The AI Threat – AI will eliminate many current radiologist tasks, but its greatest threat to radiology would come from referring physicians using imaging AI independently. 

Multi-Diagnostics – The rise of non–imaging precision diagnostics (ie, “liquid biopsies”) and multimodal/multiomic diagnostics will reduce imaging’s role in disease detection, and lead to a more-integrated diagnostic and treatment planning process.

Future Therapy – Major advances in precision imaging, image-guided technology, and theranostics would allow radiology to increase its clinical value by owning image-related procedures.

Those are some major changes, and would require radiologists to take similarly major actions in order to thrive in 2040 and beyond:

  • Understand that image interpretation will become a commodity, and maybe “obsolete”
  • Maintain a “laser-sharp” focus on adding value across the healthcare continuum 
  • Actively embrace radiologists’ role as AI’s primary users, owners, and managers
  • “Extensively cultivate” radiology’s interventional and theranostics capabilities

The Takeaway
It’s impossible to accurately predict how medicine will evolve over the next two decades, and there’s surely plenty of readers who are growing tired of obsolescence warnings.

That said, the authors are very well-respected and each of their forecasts can be directly linked to today’s emerging trends, suggesting that radiologists who follow their advice might be more likely to “thrive” in 2040 regardless of how the future unfolds.

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