Radiology benchmarking data a hot commodity
Here’s some help on where to look
Recently, a Healthcare Benchmarks reader asked if we knew of any resources for radiology benchmarks. She was having trouble locating any data, and a cursory search of some major organizations and consulting groups turned up little information. HB has located some resources for those looking for radiology data, which we share here.
The biggest resource for these data is the American Healthcare Radiology Administrators (AHRA), a professional organization based in Sudbury, MA, with about 4,000 members. The group has several publications available, including a 2000 compensation survey ($25 members, $50 nonmembers).
Its most recent publication, Assessing the Use and Costs of Imaging Services ($70 nonmembers; member cost not provided) includes data on patient classifications, relative cost-weight scales for imaging services, type and frequency of imaging services, and comparisons by hospital and by hospital to peer group.
The rest of the products are somewhat older:
• Chest X-Ray and Mammography Repeat Rates ($15 members, $25 nonmembers) includes data from 1995, as well as success stories from members with low repeat rates, a section on how to calculate repeat rates, and the American College of Radiology standard for the performance of screening mammography.
• AHRA Survey: Radiology Nursing ($15 members, $25 nonmembers) is based on survey responses from more than 700 AHRA members and reports on current practices and the relationship between radiology nurses and their departments. Results are reported separately for hospital departments and ambulatory, outpatient centers in the following areas: volume per nurse full-time equivalent (FTE), nursing duties, charting responsibilities, non-nursing functions, ionic/non-ionic screening, reporting relationship, requirements, coverage, and nursing society membership.
• Nuclear Medicine Operations ($10 members and $15 nonmembers) includes data on staffing, equipment, and isotope source. It also includes data on key factors in the management of nuclear medicine services, including staffing (technologists, physicists, physicians, and nurses), equipment, isotope source, SPECT vs. planar procedures, hard-copy imaging, and percentage of inpatient studies.
• Film Library Practices ($35 members, $50 non-members) is a 100-page book published in 1996 that includes survey data on staffing, storage, copy policies, and problem areas. Results are analyzed by annual exam volume for hospital departments and nonhospital facilities and provide a unique opportunity to analyze the workings of this vital area.
• Radiology Nursing ($15 members, $25 nonmembers) is a 1997 survey that includes data on volume per FTE nurse by modality; nursing responsibilities, reporting relationships, and requirements for radiology nurses. Data are broken down into hospital and nonhospital facilities.
• Utilization of Imaging Staff: Measuring Productivity ($35 members, $50 nonmembers) is based on a 1995 member survey. Data are reported in three categories: all hospitals, community hospitals only, and nonhospital facilities. Data were collected separately for the following areas: diagnostic radiology, CT, ultrasound, MRI, interventional/ angiography, cardiac catheterization, radiation therapy, and nuclear medicine.
The volume of procedures per FTE is reported for the positions of technologist, supervisory technologist, transcriptionist, receptionist, scheduler, darkroom technician/aide, transporter, nurse, and for film library personnel.
Where sufficient data were available, results are presented as a function of region, bed size, procedure volume, type of hospital, and hours of operation.
• Radiology Report Turnaround Time: Survey & Success Stories ($15 members, $25 nonmembers) provides statistics from 1995 on the length of time it takes for a radiology report to reach the patient’s chart or the physician’s office. Times are reported both as averages and in percentiles, enabling comparison against the top performers. In addition, respondents with the quickest turnaround times provide "success stories" on how they achieved their results.
The data are broken out in a variety of ways: inpatient vs. outpatient performance, by exam volume and by bed size. Information on the use of digital dictation, average transcription time, distribution of reports, and other important data are also included.
• RADWORKS Workload Measurement Standards ($15 members, $25 nonmembers) is a practical tool for measuring and managing staffing. It provides uniform standards on technologist time for 34 radiologic procedures representing about 80% of the typical radiology department’s volume and include all diagnostic modalities except MRI. The standards are presented in a graphic format that enables you to compare procedure times quickly and simply. In addition, variables that were found to have a significant effect on procedure time are factored into the standards.
Need for quality data continues
Among the consulting groups, Dowdy Management and Consulting in Cocoa Beach, FL, is the only one of more than a dozen contacted by HB that said it compiles any radiology databases.
CEO Sharon Dowdy, MS, RTR, says that her company has productivity data in all imaging areas, compiled both from clients and from other published data, "which are very scarce," she adds. Among her cache of data: databases for the number of exams per job description, number of lines per transcriptionist, average wait times, average exam times per exam per modality, and average pay scales.
The databases are detailed to show average national figures, as well as regional or particular market data. For instance, the average national salary for nuclear medicine nuclear technologists is $18.05 per hour, says Dowdy. But in New York City, it’s $17.19.
There is certainly a need for quality data, says Bob Maier, a consultant with Regents Health Resources, consulting firm based in Brentwood, TN. "The problem with any benchmarking study is uniformity and consistency of reporting," he says. "Unfortunately, everyone does it a little differently."
[Editor’s Note: If you have another resource to share with our inquiring reader, please e-mail it to Lisa Hubbell at the [email protected]. Or if you are having trouble finding some benchmarking data, perhaps we can help guide you to some sources. Use the same e-mail address for those queries, too.
For more information, contact:
• Bob Maier, Consultant, Regents Health Resources, Brentwood, TN. Telephone: (615) 376-4424. Web site: www.RegentsHealth.com.
• Sharon Dowdy, MS, RTR, CEO, Dowdy Management & Consulting Inc., Cocoa Beach, FL. Telephone: (321) 799-3627. Web site: www.dowdymanagement.com.
• American Healthcare Radiology Administrators, Sudbury, MA. Telephone: (978) 443-7591. Web site: www.ahraonline.org.]
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