AuntMinnie.com's 2023 Buyer's Guide

Buyer’s Guide

THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO RADIOLOGY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

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8 ways to reduce musculoskeletal pain from the radiology workstation

More than 75% of radiologists report that they experience musculoskeletal discomfort from using workstations, but there are at least eight ways to mitigate the problem, according to a survey published December 29 in Academic Radiology

Awareness of basic ergonomic parameters -- and their implementation -- goes a long way toward making hours spent at the workstation more comfortable, wrote a team led by Dr. Helena Bentley of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

“Knowledge of ergonomics is associated with decreased musculoskeletal discomfort and ... those in the radiology workforce with greater self-reported knowledge of ergonomics have a decreased likelihood of musculoskeletal discomfort,” they wrote.

Ergonomics is an attempt to ease wear and tear on the body in the workplace, but not much research has been conducted to assess ergonomics

in radiology settings, Bentley and colleagues explained. To address this knowledge gap, the investigators conducted a questionnaire study that included 191 radiologists and radiology residents who were members of the Canadian Association of Radiologists; most (61%) worked in academic settings and 75.9% were staff radiologists. The survey

assessed participants’ experience of radiology workstation ergonomics and musculoskeletal discomfort.

The researchers found that 78.5% of study participants experience musculoskeletal discomfort from use of radiology workstation, and 92.7% of these stated that this discomfort affected their productivity. Common causes of the discomfort included not having the top of the monitor at eye level when seated and not having the wrists straight and flat when using the mouse.

There are at least eight ergonomics factors that can help mitigate musculoskeletal discomfort at the radiology workstation, Bentley and colleagues explained:

1. Maintain relaxed shoulders and arms.

2. Arrange the monitor an arm’s length away, with the top of the screen at eye level.

3. Have a chair with lumbar support.

4. Ensure that the full length of the thighs is supported by the seat.

5. Have the back of your knee three finger widths from the edge of the chair.

6. Arrange hands shoulder-width and wrists flat.

7. Hold elbows at sides and at 90 degrees.

8. Place feet flat on the floor.

As the volume of studies radiologists must read in a day continues to increase, addressing workstation ergonomics is even more important, according to Bentley and colleagues.

“Advocacy is needed to ensure appropriate knowledge of ergonomics and awareness of the radiology workforce’s predisposition to experience musculoskeletal discomfort,” they concluded. “There is great opportunity to improve the wellness and productivity of the radiology workforce through addressing radiology workstation ergonomics.”

Advertising Directory

ADVANCED VISUALIZATION

• Polarean Imaging: 5

APPLICATIONS

• RamSoft, Inc.: 10

BUSINESS SERVICES

• Esaote: 4

• Healthcare Administrative Partners

(HAP): 7

CONSULTING SERVICES

• Healthcare Administrative Partners

(HAP): 7

CT

• Canon Medical Systems USA, Inc.: 15

DEALERS & DISTRIBUTORS:

• MRIequip: 9

ENTERPRISE IMAGING

• MYCO Medical: 4

• RamSoft, Inc.: 10

GENERAL RADIOLOGY

• Canon Medical Systems USA, Inc.: 15

• Esaote: 4

• MYCO Medical: 4

IMAGE-GUIDED SURGERY

• HR Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: 10

IMAGING SERVICES

• Esaote: 4

• Polarean Imaging: 5

INFORMATION PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

• AdvaHealth Solutions: 10

• Healthcare Administrative Partners

(HAP): 7

INFORMATION SYSTEMS

• AdvaHealth Solutions: 10

INTERVENTIONAL RADIOLOGY

• HR Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: 10

MAMMOGRAPHY

• LG Business Solutions: 2

MEDICAL DISPLAYS

• LG Business Solutions: 2

MODALITIES

• Canon Medical Systems USA, Inc.: 15

• Esaote: 4

• MYCO Medical: 4

Advertising Directory

MRI

• Canon Medical Systems USA, Inc.: 15

• Esaote: 4

• MRIequip: 9

• MYCO Medical: 4

• Polarean Imaging: 5

PACS/TELERADIOLOGY

• AdvaHealth Solutions: 10

• RamSoft, Inc.: 10

PET

• Canon Medical Systems USA, Inc.: 15

Now at your fingertips is a diverse line of Non-Ferrous and PVC products for your MRI environment

Including the first Non-Ferromagnetic Wheelchair and Stretcher that will pass Ferromagnetic Detection Systems. Featuring Non-Magnetic Products for your MRI Environment:

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• Complete Non-Ferromagnetic Line

• Breast Biopsy Trays and Draping

• Coil Carts

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• Full Line of Maintenance Products

• Products For Ultrasound & CT

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PRE-OWNED EQUIPMENT:

• MYCO Medical: 4

ULTRASOUND

• Canon Medical Systems USA, Inc.: 15

• HR Pharmaceuticals, Inc.: 10

• MRIequip: 9

X-RAY

• Canon Medical Systems USA, Inc.: 15

• LG Business Solutions: 2

MRIequip is proud to introduce MRI products that are MR conditional at 7 Tesla or less.

2022 Minnies Winners

TO ALL THE WINNERS!

Dr. Martin Pomper, PhD, Johns Hopkins University

Dr. Christine Cooky Menias, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, AZ

Gina Greenwood, University of Wisconsin Hospital, Madison

Kristi Moore, PhD, University of Mississippi Medical Center

Most Influential Radiology Researcher

Most Effective Radiology Educator

Most Effective Radiology Administrator/Manager

Most Effective Radiologic Sciences Educator

2022 Minnies Winners

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE WINNERS!

Best Radiologist Training Program

University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Best Radiologic Sciences Training Program

Thomas Jefferson University

Most Significant News Event in Radiology

A shortage in the U.S. supply of contrast media

Biggest Threat to Radiology

Physician burnout

2022 Minnies Winners

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE WINNERS!

Hottest Clinical Procedure

Photon-counting CT

Scientific Paper of the Year

Mandating Limits on Workload, Duty, and Speed in Radiology. Alexander R, Waite S, et al, Radiology, June 14

Best New Radiology Device

Naeotom Alpha, Siemens Healthineers

Best New

Radiology Software

AI Operating System, Aidoc

2022 Minnies Winners

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE WINNERS!

Best New Radiology Vendor

Best Educational Mobile App

Annalise.ai RadDiscord, a server on Discord

Best Radiology Image

Coronal 3-mm maximum intensity projection image of a CSF-venous fistula on a photon-counting CT scanner with 0.2-mm resolution. Image from Dr. Fides Schwartz et al, of Duke University.

Radiologists have central role in improving health equity

Radiologists have a responsibility to improve and ensure health equity for all patients, researchers wrote in a discussion piece published online January 12 in RadioGraphics.

In their discussion, a team led by Dr. Julia Goldberg from New York University Langone Health wrote about the longstanding effects and consequences of structural segregation from before the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and how radiologists serve as a central piece in striving for health equity.

“The provision of imaging screening, diagnostic tests, and interventions can be inclusive of radiology’s diverse patient population and directly address Black healthcare disparities,” they wrote.

Anti-Black segregation

Structural segregation and antiBlack racism can be seen throughout medical education, research, and the provision of health resources in U.S. history, according to the authors.

These included such events as three Black students expelled from Harvard Medical School in 1850 after protests about their on-campus presence, the infamous Flexner Report that led to the closure of 71% (5 out of 7) of medical schools for Black students, the Mississippi Appendectomy, and the Tuskegee Syphilis Study among others.

The field of radiology is not immune to such infamous events in medical history. Early examples include radium being studied at university laboratories to lighten a Black person’s skin color, and radiology researchers exploring the potential sterilization of “degenerates” and women with mental illnesses.

Black medical professionals meanwhile had difficulty obtaining membership into radiology societies in their earliest incarnations, including RSNA and the American Roentgen Ray Society. The National Medical Association (NMA) meanwhile was established in 1895 by Black physicians who were denied admission to the American Medical Association

(AMA), where Black physician membership was limited to northern states in the 19th century.

Black pioneers in radiology

Despite the uphill cultural battle for Black radiology professionals, they still found ways to advance the field. Goldberg and colleagues noted the following achievements:

Phi Beta Kappa; he led the Blackowned International Hospital in Manhattan.

• Dr. William Edward Allen Jr. -- the first Black member certified by the American Board of Radiology in 1935; the first Black member of the American College of Radiology in 1940; the second known Black member of RSNA in 1948; scholarly works featured in Radiology and the American Journal of Roentgenology; the first Black member to receive the ACR Gold Medal Award.

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed racial segregation in all federally funded programs while the Social Security Amendments of 1965 created Medicare and Medicaid. These legislative acts determined that anti-Black discrimination was unconstitutional and expanded protections for Black patient medical care and physician employment.

Lingering effects

• Dr. Marcus Wheatland -- the first Black radiologist who started using x-rays in his Newport, RI practice; he had scholarly works featured in the American X-Ray Journal and JAMA.

• Dr. Rudolph Fisher -- the first Black radiologist to be a member of

GUIDE | COPYRIGHT © 2023

Despite legislation paving the way for better patient care and professional advancement in radiology and other medical fields, the effects of anti-Black segregation prior to the Civil Rights Act linger, according to the authors.

For example, Black physicians make up 6.2% of medical school graduates. Also, 3.1% of diagnostic radiology residents are Black, as well as 2.1%

of diagnostic radiology practicing physicians, and 2.0% of diagnostic radiology faculty.

In a 2019 survey of ACR members, 28% of physicians from marginalized racial groups reported “unfair or disrespectful treatment” because of their race. A 2019 study of letters of recommendation for radiology residency applicants showed that letter writers were less likely to use terms reflecting an individual’s positive attributes for Black and Latinx applicants compared with white and Asian applicants.

Diversity promotion meanwhile remains a challenge, the authors noted. A 2020 study demonstrated that 54% of radiology professional society websites did not include diversity statements, while 46% did not have diversity initiatives.

What can radiologists do?

With radiologists being on the front lines of healthcare, the Goldberg team pointed out ways that professionals in the field can strive for better health equity, including targeted interventions and structural changes.

Examples of targeted interventions the researchers listed include expanding outreach efforts, spreading awareness of screening guidelines, and easing

scheduling and transportation difficulties. Previous research suggests that patient navigators help with better adherence to screening guidelines.

On the structural level, the researchers wrote that reexamining imaging guidelines to accommodate for differences in cancer likelihood could help with better care in Black patients. Other actions they noted included expanded insurance coverage for CT colonography and linking certain Medicare quality measures to observed health disparities, incentivizing health equity work in radiology.

The team also recommended that newer artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms should implement anti-bias methodologies and that algorithms using race as a standalone factor should be disputed.

Along with that, clinical and academic workforces should work to be more diverse, the researchers wrote. They cited research that indicates more diverse workplaces lead to improved employee performance and innovative practices.

“Acknowledging the discriminatory history of radiology and striving to improve diversity and health equity will ultimately work to improve patient outcomes,” Goldberg and colleagues wrote.

2022 ServiceTrak Winners

Best Customer Satisfaction: Siemens

Healthineers

Best System Performance: Siemens

Healthineers

Best Service: Canon Medical Systems

USA

Best Customer Satisfaction: Siemens

Healthineers

Best System Performance: Siemens

Healthineers

Best Service: Canon Medical Systems

USA

Nuclear Medicine (SPECT)

Best Customer Satisfaction: Siemens

Healthineers

Best System Performance: Siemens

Healthineers

Best Service: Siemens Healthineers

2022 ServiceTrak Winners

Best Customer Satisfaction: Siemens

Healthineers

Best System Performance: Siemens

Healthineers

Best Service: GE HealthCare and Siemens Healthineers

Interventional X-Ray

Best Customer Satisfaction:

GE HealthCaree and Siemens

Healthineers

Best System Performance: GE

HealthCare

Best Service: Canon Medical Systems

USA and Siemens Healthineers

PET RF

Best Customer Satisfaction: Siemens

Healthineers

Best System Performance: Siemens

Healthineers and Shimadzu Medical Systems USA

Best Service: Canon Medical Systems USA

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2022 ServiceTrak Winners

General X-Ray

Best Customer Satisfaction:

Carestream

Best System Performance: Shimadzu

Medical Systems USA

Best Service: Canon Medical Systems

USA

Radiation Oncology

Best Customer Satisfaction: Varian

Best System Performance: Varian

Best Service: Accuray and Varian

Mammography

Best Customer Satisfaction: Hologic

Best System Performance: Hologic

Best Service: Hologic