Guidelines for the Written Radiology Report

The written radiology report is the dominant means by which radiologists communicate their interpretation of imaging findings. The quality of the report therefore has a direct impact on the safety and appropriateness of decisions about treatment and further investigations. The written report also may be used in education or research, serve as a legal document and/or provide billing information.

The intent of the guideline is to provide advice to radiologists and radiology trainees about best practice with regard to the written report.

Background

This project follows a systematic review of the literature that identified the elements of the written radiology report form and content that relate to report quality. The results were presented at the RSNA 2009 meeting and are published in the August 2010 edition of the Journal of the American College of Radiology. This literature review provided the evidence that was integrated with the expert consensus of a multidisciplinary advisory panel convened by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR), to develop the recommendations. The advisory panel consisted of radiologist, consumer, specialist and general practice referrer  as well as industry representatives.

Reference: Pool F, Goergen SK. Quality of the Written Radiology Report: A Review of the Literature. JACR 2010;7(8):634-43.
[Available from the website of the JACR]

Public Consultation

The general public and health care professionals were invited to provide feedback on the guideline document that resulted from this project. This consultation process was open for four months from December 2010, closing at the end of March 2011.

Feedback provided will inform the final version of the guideline to be implemented through the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists (RANZCR) curriculum for radiology trainees, and through the RANZCR's standards of practice.

The public consultation was an important stage in the development of this guideline document, and has now closed.