Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on radiologists

Abstract

COVID-19 pandemic is one of the biggest crises faced by health-care systems in the recent times. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on radiology workflow, working pattern, training and continuing professional development (CPD) activities, as well as personal well-being of the radiologists during the pandemic. Material and Methods: Questionnaire designed to gather the opinions regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was distributed to radiologists throughout the world in electronic format. Anonymized responses were obtained and analyzed. Two hundred radiologists, working in 17 different countries, responded to our questionnaire. Majority of the respondents were from India (72.8%) and 70% of the them were in the age group of 25–45 years. About 80% of respondents felt that they were well protected or moderately well protected in terms of the personal protective equipment (PPE), however, most of them felt that the use of PPE had affected their ability to work. Similar number of radiologists felt that there was significant reduction in the radiology workload. More than half of the respondents felt that their working patterns were altered by the pandemic with drastic impact on teaching, CPD activities, and personal well-being. COVID-19 pandemic has had profound impact on the radiologists all over the world. Learning from the experiences of the first wave should be used to provide innovative solutions to some of the challenges posed to provide better radiology services, training, and improve the well-being of radiologists if we encounter a similar situation in the future. COVID-19 pandemic had significant impact on radiologists. Radiologists felt that they were well or moderately well protected with PPEs; however, PPEs affected their ability to work. Radiology workflow was significantly reduced in the pandemic with more radiologists working from home. COVID-19 pandemic had deleterious effect on radiologist’s well-being, education, and CPD activities.

Work-related musculoskeletal symptoms among Saudi radiologists: a cross-sectional multi-centre study

“…Radiologists who spend more time at their workstations have a higher prevalence of musculoskeletal problems [ 24 ]; similar results were found in our investigation. Most of the study participants reviewed medical images on computers for an average of 7–9 h per day, which is comparable with a prior study on radiologists [ 31 ].…”

“…Regarding the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, it has had apparent effect on the radiologists everywhere. A previous study reported that during the pandemic, the number of radiologists in the office decreased dramatically as more people chose to work from home [ 31 ]. Possibly because of the greater severity of other organ system manifestations of COVID-19, the musculoskeletal (MSK) manifestations of this virus have not been completely reported [ 32 ].…”

Perceived stress among doctors working in a dedicated COVID-19 hospital in North India

“…[1,2] Multiple studies from all over the world have shown that HCWs suffer from increased stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia, and other psychological problems because of working in COVID-19 wards. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] The present study is being reported from a dedicated COVID-19 hospital in Punjab in North India to assess the perceived stress among doctors and find its association with working hours, age, designation, and other parameters.…”

Simulation-Based Training on Basic Obstetrics and Gynecology Ultrasound Skills During COVID Pandemic

“…Performing ultrasonography not only requires specialized equipment but also the availability of an expert round the clock. COVID-19 pandemic had a widespread impact on radiologists, increasing their workload and exposure to the virus leading to an alarming rise in sickness absenteeism [ 2 ]. In certain parts of the world, this led to delays in appointments, long waiting times for imaging studies, and delays in diagnosis and initiation of treatment, significantly affecting the patient care.…”