Combined EM/Diagnostic Radiology?

[Greymatter468]

Okey, why did i thought of this combination.
I work as EM resident in europe and we do not evaluate much CT scans. You can learn self of course. But my thought is - if you are double specialized with rad maybe it can give much to patient flow, you can take quick evaluations self and avoid long with times till you get rad answer. You have good ultrasonography skills and if you want to avoid a bit patient contact can work for exemple 50/50 or 60/40.
Maybe it is just me who thinks that way. What do you think?

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[betamale]

It's useful because radiology sharpens your diagnostic skills, ultrasound technique, procedural skills. You learn how to order the right tests, protocol the CT, interpret them. You also learn a wide breadth of diseases that you won't even know exists, across different specialties.

I also catch the misses which really saves you, the patient...and the radiologist.

I did a year of radiology residency in addition to my IM/FM/EM training

 

[Dave1980]

It's good to know how to look at a CT for any specialty. I don't think any specialty would work well as a combined training program.

 

[scoopdaboop]

I agree patient's can be discharged or admitted or whatever decision made faster, but then you're much more liable for missing things. as an example, when i was working in the er, the docs would wait for the radiology report no matter what before making a disposition decision, even if they're 90-99 percent sure there's nothing going on in that CT scan or CXR.

Why is that? Because the radiologist might have caught something they didn't, and i don't see a combined residency making Er docs confident enough to eliminate the bottleneck; that is to not wait for the radiology report especially for CTs. plus, how long would you make the combined residency? and what's the tangible monetary benefit, because why spend 6+ years for a combined ER+radiology residency when you can spend 3 years for an ER and comfortably rake in 300 + or just 5 years for rads and make 400.

 

[Fenixak]

When are you going to have time to dictate all those trauma studies you read. Its not going to improve flow if you are the one reading/dictating.

 

[Mad Jack]

You can't combine two fields that are both volume dependent and expect it to work out.

 

[CherryRedDracul]

EM and radiology are just way too different as fields to make a combined residency worthwhile.

 

[deleted950463]

You can't combine two fields that are both volume dependent and expect it to work out.

both field are dependent on throughput. In rads it’s called TAT or turnaround time and in EM it’s called moving the meat.

Additionally, if you are reading rad studies in the ED just to dispo people, you may not be paid for the formal read. To do a formal read is significantly more time consuming.

for example, if I look at a CT myself, say it’s a body CT(chest or abd/pelvis) that I am more familiar with, to form a major impression wouldnt take longer than the time it takes to scroll through all the sequences, like a minute or two.

but if a rad were to render a formal read it would take considerably longer because they have to report the incidental adrenal nodules and the lung nodules.

 

[Splenda88]

Maybe EM should rotate for at least for 6 months in radiology so they can stop ordering every imaging in the world...

 

[Dantrolene FC]

I don’t like dual residencies because it contributes to the perceived physician shortage. Would you rather have one radiologist and one EM doctor, or would you rather have one rad/EM doctor?