Writing a patient-oriented radiology report - Radiologists may be coming up short

The 21st Century Cures Act required immediate patient access to electronic medical records, creating a new audience for radiology reports, potentially less familiar with medical terminology. Patients often review their reports before clinicians, causing anxiety, misinterpretation, and potentially unnecessary care and reduced adherence. Radiologists may need to tailor their reports to this new audience, including concise patient synopses, avoidance of jargon, and inclusion of resources/glossaries. Scalable tools including AI may ultimately help, but a variety of potential changes could be implemented in the meantime to improve comprehension and outcomes.