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Workflow interruptions in the health care delivery environment are a major contributor to medical errors and have been extensively studied within numerous hospital settings, including the nursing environment and the operating room, along with their effects on physician workflow. Less understood, though, is the role of interruptions in other highly specialized clinical domains and subspecialty services, such as diagnostic radiology. The workflow of the on-call radiologist, in particular, is especially susceptible to disruption by telephone calls and other modes of physician-to-physician communication. Herein, the authors describe their initial efforts to quantify the degree of interruption experienced by on-call radiologists and examine its potential implications in patient safety and overall clinical care., (Copyright © 2014 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The exponential growth of CT imaging has been fueled by recent technical advances, improved diagnostic accuracy, and medicolegal pressures. CT imaging has replaced many more invasive and expensive tests and has proven itself an indispensable part of diagnostic medicine. This growth in CT imaging, however, has also been accompanied by an unavoidable increased cumulative radiation exposure to the general public. It is important to fully understand the risks and benefits of and alternatives to CT imaging so that an informed decision can be made. A number of simple strategies may be used to minimize radiation exposure during CT imaging. These include protocol redesign and CT dose adjustments on the basis of each patient's body mass index, limiting length of coverage and multiphase examinations, and iterative reconstruction. At Imaging Healthcare Specialists, a highly successful program of radiation dose reduction was created, and dose savings of up to 90% have been achieved in select patients while maintaining diagnostic image quality. The approach is simple, reproducible, and inexpensive., (Copyright © 2012 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)