Improving the quality of radiological examinations: effectiveness of an internal participatory approach

To assess the quality of radiological examinations (REs) and to evaluate the effectiveness of a participatory continuous improvement approach to ensure best practices in a Portuguese hospital imaging department.

At baseline, we found 232 (10.2%) non-compliances, mostly related to the criteria image centering and framing in chest radiography (CXR), proper use of radiological protection equipment in other conventional RE (CR) and X-ray beam collimation (CXR/CR).

A baseline and three consecutive evaluations of the RE quality were conducted. Each assessment was followed by participatory focused interventions for improvement.

For each evaluation, we selected a random sample (n = 60) of cases for four types of examination (total n = 240 for each assessment, and 960 for the whole project). Both the building of quality criteria and the design of interventions for improvement were participatory, involving the radiology technicians. Estimates of criteria compliance were calculated with 95% confidence intervals. The statistical significance of absolute and relative improvements was tested using one-tail z-tests.

After the intervention, non-compliances decreased to 48 (2.1%). Compliance estimates improved in 25 of 38 criteria assessed, with statistical significance for 5 criteria in CXR and 3 in CR and digestive examination.

The internal participatory approach enabled the identification of existing quality problems and, by focusing on the more frequent quality defects, was effective in improving the quality of RE.