[Controlling in outpatient radiology]

Radiology is among the medical disciplines which require the highest investment costs in the healthcare system. The need to design efficient workflows to ensure maximum utilization of the equipment has long been known. In order to be able to establish a sound financial plan prior to a project or equipment purchase, the costs of an examination have to be broken down by modality and compared with the reimbursement rates. Obviously, the same holds true for operative decisions when scarce human resources have to be allocated. It is the task of controlling to review the economic viability of the different modalities and ideally, the results are incorporated into the management decision-making processes. The main section of this article looks at the recognition and allocation of direct and indirect costs in a medical center (Medizinisches Versorgungszentrum - MVZ) in the German North Rhine region. The profit contribution of each examination is determined by deducting the costs from the income generated by the treatment of patients with either private or statutory health insurance.