Does Better Radiologist-Patient Communication Contribute to Lower Patient Anxiety During the Breast Biopsy Process?

The June issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology focuses on a variety of issues relating to clinical practice, practice management, health services and policy, and radiology education and training. Topics to be covered include the impact of radiologist-patient communication on patient anxiety before and immediately after imaging-guided breast biopsy procedures; imaging informatics; citizenship in radiology; radiology stewardship and quality improvement; reading room electives and the Physician Payments Sunshine Act.

Articles include:

Patient Anxiety Before and Immediately After Imaging-Guided Breast Biopsy Procedures: Impact of Radiologist-Patient CommunicationLauren S. Miller, MD, Rebecca A. Shelby, PhD, Melissa Hayes Balmadrid, MD, Sora Yoon, MD, Jay A. Baker, MD, Liz Wildermann, Mary Scott Soo, MDBetter radiologist-patient communication is a unique factor contributing to lower patient anxiety during the breast biopsy process, with implications for radiologist training and efforts to improve patient adherence to mammography.

Citizenship in Radiology: Defining a Concept and Proposing Its Measure Christoph I. Lee, MD, MSHS, William T. Herrington, MD, E. Michael Donner III, MD, Edward I. Bluth, MD The authors provide an introduction to the concept of citizenship in radiology and how individual radiologists, practices and the supporting societies can measure, acknowledge and promote citizenship.

Radiology Stewardship and Quality Improvement: The Process and Costs of Implementing a CT Radiation Dose Optimization Committee in a Medium-Sized Community Hospital SystemJenifer R. Q. W. Siegelman, MD, MPH, Dustin A. Gress, MSThe authors describe the process, cost and value of establishing a codified process for CT quality improvement at a medium-sized community hospital, supporting the institution’s intent of becoming a highly reliable organization, using a team approach. Reading Room Electives: Say Goodbye to the “Radi-Holiday” David M. Naeger, MD, Andrew Phelps, MD, Maureen Kohi, MD, Brett Elicker, MD, Karen Ordovas, MD, Emily M. Webb, MDEngaging and educational medical student reading room electives are challenging to develop; the authors review the required components and provide a detailed list of activities that can enrich the reading room elective experience. The Physician Payments Sunshine Act: What the Average Radiologist and Manager Need to Know Nogah Haramati, MD The Physician Payments Sunshine Act requires applicable manufacturers of medical devices, drugs, biological material, or medical supplies to report payments or transfers of value that are provided to physicians or teaching hospitals for publication in a publically searchable database; however, individuals may appear in this public database, even if they actually did not receive a transfer of value.

For additional information, or to schedule an interview with a JACR spokesperson, please contact Heather Curry at 703-390-9822 or [email protected].