How Michigan Medicine improved mammogram reporting workflows

By addressing the root causes of workflow inefficiencies, Ann Arbor-based Michigan Medicine’s department of radiology was able to decrease its mean turnaround time for mammogram reports by 38.8%, according to a study published Jan. 23 in Current Problems in Diagnostic Radiology.

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Here are five things to know from the study:

  1. Before the intervention, the department’s peak turnaround time for mammogram reports reached 198 hours, or 8.25 days.
  2. Researchers identified three causes for the delayed reporting: radiologist interruptions, a paper-based workflow and a “cumbersome” dictation process.
  3. To address these issues, the team implemented a batched, uninterrupted and digitized workflow for radiologists to follow, and set an institutional turnaround time goal of 72 hours, or three days.
  4. Radiologists reported their distraction decreased from 5.6 points to 2.0 points and their fatigue decreased from 4.8 points to 2.6 points, with the new workflow.
  5. The average daily volume of mammogram interpretation increased from 21.0 to 50.3.

    The department met its 72-hour goal 14 of the 15 week-long intervention study period, compared to six of the initial 17-week pre-intervention study period. 

Read the full study here.

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