Providers' Access of Imaging Versus Only Reports: A System Log File Analysis

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Medical Imaging Access
• Health Information Exchange

Background:

• Growing use of technology enables healthcare providers to access imaging study results.
• This study investigates how healthcare professionals access radiology images versus text-only reports through a health information exchange (HIE).

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine differences in accessing radiology images compared to text-only reports by healthcare professionals via an HIE system.
• To identify provider and setting characteristics influencing image access versus text report access.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 157,256 historical sessions from an HIE system (2013-2014).
• Involved 1,670 physicians and non-physicians accessing text reports and imaging.
• Multilevel mixed-effects regression models assessed associations between provider/session characteristics and image access.

Main Results:

• Specialists had an 18% higher probability of accessing images over text-only reports compared to primary care physicians.
• Specialty care practices showed a 4% higher probability of image access, while emergency departments had an 8% lower probability.
• Radiologists, orthopedists, and neurologists accounted for 79% of image access sessions; these specialists, along with surgeons and pulmonary specialists, accessed images more frequently than text reports.

Conclusions:

• Provider type and care setting significantly influence the need to access images versus text reports.
• Optimizing image sharing benefits requires consideration of these differing access needs to enhance patient care.