Radiology Request Form

Abstract

Introduction: Radiology request form (RRF) is a medical referral to a radiologist requesting input concerning the diagnosis, treatment, follow-up of patients, and intervention where necessary. The RRF usually provides information on the patient(s) and the investigation(s) being requested. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study, in which request forms were retrospectively reviewed over a period of 6 months in the Radiology Department of the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital. A total of 1131 request forms filled by medical doctors were analyzed to ascertain the degree of completeness of filling the forms. The data were collated and analyzed using the IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 23. The results were expressed in simple percentages, frequencies, and presented in tables, charts, and graphs. Results: Ultrasonography was the most requested radiologic investigation (55.4%), while X-ray and computed tomography scan account for 41.4% and 1.1%, respectively. Majority of the forms had adequately entered date of request (97.7%) and required investigation and patient's names (99.6%). Patient's age was appropriately entered in 51.9% of cases, while 34.1% kept the space blank. Clinical information was indicated in 50.8% of the forms, while 97.2% did not include history of patient's allergy as regards the use of radiopharmaceutical agents. The patient's consultant and resident's doctor names were appropriately entered in 72.1% and 81.7% of the request forms, respectively. Signature authentication by the resident doctor is available in 13.2% of the request forms. Conclusion: It was observed that majority of the RRFs were not completely and appropriately filled; thus, complete information regarding the patient is not provided to the radiologist to enhance report accuracy. Clinical information if adequately provided can improve the quality of patient management, follow-up, training, and research.

Prevalence of inadequate completion of computed tomography request forms submitted to public and private medical imaging centres in Ashanti Region of Ghana: a retrospective audit

“…CT-scans were requested to analyse major parts of the body, including: head [65.4% (public) vs 56.3% (private)]; chest [11.7% (public) vs 21.7% (private)]; and abdomen [14.5% (public) vs 9.2% (private)]. These results further enhance observations reported by studies from Zambia and Saudi Arabia[6,15].The partial completion of the referring physician information had been consistently reported in several studies[7, 16,17]. However, available studies require caution in interpretation because they do not estimate the risk of incomplete documentation of referring physician information.…”

Adequacy of completion of radiology request forms at St. Francis’ Hospital of Katete District: A clinical audit in Zambia

“…On account of observed incomplete and incorrectly filled-in RRFs, the department decided to audit the adequacy https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/mmj.v35i2.7 of completion of general RRFs. In addition, the audit was supported by available literature that confirms that incomplete and incorrect filled-in RRFs negatively impacted the quality of medical imaging services 2,4,19,24 .…”

“…A study by Zafar et al 21 though with a focus on RRFs for CT, found comparable results, where 72.34 % of RRFs in their study were also devoid of complete information relating to the patient identification. Robinson et al 24 and Whitley et al 3 emphasise the need for clinicians to provide adequate information, such as the patient's name. Besides, details such as gender and age are essential to the strengthening of the patient's identity 24 .…”

“…Robinson et al 24 and Whitley et al 3 emphasise the need for clinicians to provide adequate information, such as the patient's name. Besides, details such as gender and age are essential to the strengthening of the patient's identity 24 . This demographic information also helps the radiologist or reporting radiographer in image interpretation and reporting because some diseases are aligned to gender and age group.…”

“…The set standard of achieving all (100%) the RRF information completed or filled-in was based on the Roya College of Radiologists 4 guidelines and literature 2 , 14 , 15 , 19 , 24 .…”