ECRI Institute and Health Care Improvement Foundation Announce Results of Regional Collaborative to Improve CT Radiation Safety

Participating Pennsylvania hospitals and imaging centers improved radiation dose tracking and achieved other significant outcomes in one-year program

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., April 11, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- ECRI Institute and the Health Care Improvement Foundation, independent nonprofit organizations devoted to patient safety and quality, announce the results of a Philadelphia-area regional collaborative to reduce patient risks associated with excessive radiation from CT scans. ECRI Institute has ranked exposure hazards from radiation therapy and CT among its published list of Top 10 Technology Hazards for the past five years and has a strong interest in helping healthcare organizations focus on this pressing patient safety issue.

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The overarching goals of the program were to make diagnostic CT scan radiation doses as low as reasonably achievable and encourage the participating facilities to actively record and monitor CT doses.

"We were pleased to see marked improvement by participating facilities in a number of significant areas including tracking radiation dose for each study, having action plans for managing excessive CT radiation dose, reducing repeat imaging studies, and increasing leadership engagement and support," says program manager Patricia Neumann, a senior patient safety analyst at ECRI Institute.

Nearly 20 hospitals and imaging centers in the Philadelphia area participated in the one-year Partnership for Patient Care program launched by the Health Care Improvement Foundation and led by ECRI Institute from July 2011 to June 2012. The final report, available for free download, "CT Radiation Safety: Right Scan, Right Dose, Right Now," provides an overview of the program and improvement results.

"The collaborative process was quite eye-opening. So often we look outside of our field for solutions to our issues. ECRI Institute encouraged us to look inside at our actual practice. Once we did, the dose improvements kept coming. Actual dose reductions of 47% were achieved," said Gerald Bedard, senior director, diagnostic imaging, Grand View Hospital.

"The Chester County Hospital CT team worked in conjunction with the ECRI Institute collaborative to improve patient safety and reduce CT radiation dose across all radiology sites," said Steven Borislow, MD, department of radiology, The Chester County Hospital and Health System. "Our CT team implemented strategies that were defined in the action goals of the program. We are proud of the accomplishments that we have achieved through this collaboration and we will continue to strive to perform CT scans at radiation doses that are as low as reasonably achievable."

Participating facilities took a confidential survey to assess CT scanning services at the start of the program and again at the end to assess improvement. Some of the most notable improvements include the following:

• 87% improvement in tracking of CT radiation doses for each study
• 64% improvement in having an action plan in place for managing excessive CT radiation
  when it occurs
• 55% improvement in auditing of CT doses

"These statistics are significant because CT radiation dose can result in unnecessarily high exposures, placing patients at increased risk of cancer and other conditions. These facilities are taking important steps to reduce the risks for their patients," says Jason Launders, ECRI Institute's director of operations and one of the medical imaging advisors for the program.

The program included reporting of CT radiation dose data, educational seminars, assistance in implementing action goals, and participation in the collaborative website.

The Partnership for Patient Care (PPC) patient safety collaborative, comprised of healthcare facilities in Southeastern Pennsylvania, the Health Care Improvement Foundation, and Independence Blue Cross, made possible this innovative project to improve CT radiation dose safety.

"CT Radiation Safety: Right Scan, Right Dose, Right Now" is available for free download at https://www.ecri.org/Documents/RM/PPC_CT_Radiation_Dose_Safety_Report.pdf. For more information about the Partnership for Patient Care CT Radiation Safety collaborative or ECRI Institute's CT radiation safety resources, contact ECRI Institute by telephone (610) 825-6000, by e-mail at [email protected], or by mail at ECRI Institute, 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462-1298, USA.

ECRI Institute (www.ecri.org), a nonprofit organization, dedicates itself to bringing the discipline of applied scientific research to healthcare to discover which medical procedures, devices, drugs, and processes are best to enable improved patient care. As pioneers in this science for 45 years, ECRI Institute marries experience and independence with the objectivity of evidence-based research. Strict conflict-of-interest guidelines ensure objectivity. ECRI Institute is designated an Evidence-based Practice Center by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. ECRI Institute PSO is listed as a federally certified Patient Safety Organization by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Find ECRI Institute on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ECRIInstitute) and on Twitter (www.twitter.com/ECRI_Institute). 

The Health Care Improvement Foundation is an independent, not-for-profit corporation that leads healthcare initiatives aimed at improving the safety, outcomes, and care experiences of all patients, residents, and consumers across the five-county greater Philadelphia region.  It is dedicated to the vision that, through an engaged, collaborative community, the region benefits from a high-performing healthcare delivery system demonstrating enhanced measures of safety, quality, and effectiveness. The foundation engages multi-stakeholder resources to implement solutions that no market participant could achieve individually.

The Partnership for Patient Care (PPC) is a collaborative dedicated to the advancement of patient care by accelerating the adoption of evidence-based clinical practices. Funded by Independence Blue Cross and the region's health systems, the partnership achieves its goals by pooling the resources, knowledge, and efforts of local healthcare providers.

Independence Blue Cross Proudly celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2013, Independence Blue Cross is the leading health insurer in southeastern Pennsylvania. With our affiliates, we serve more than seven million people nationwide. We are enhancing the health and wellness of the people and communities we serve by delivering innovative and competitively priced healthcare products and services; pioneering new ways to reward doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare professionals for coordinated, quality care; and supporting programs and events that promote wellness. To learn more about how we're changing the game, visit www.ibx.com. Connect with us on Facebook at ibx.com/facebook and on Twitter at @ibx. Independence Blue Cross is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

SOURCE ECRI Institute