The professional quality criteria of Italian breast screening radiologists: results from a national survey comparing the programmes started in 2000-2012 versus the ones started in 1990-1999. Doralba Morrone, Livia Giordano, Franca Artuso, Daniela Bernardi, Chiara Fedato, Alfonso Frigerio,Daniela Giorgi, Carlo Naldoni, Gianni Saguatti, Daniela Severi, Mario Taffurelli, Daniela Terribile, Leonardo Ventura and Lauro Bucchi [PDF - 75.80 kbytes]

摘要

Introduction. In Italy, due to increasing healthcare budget and staff shortages, the recentlycreated regional mammography screening programmes were established underworse radiology practice quality criteria than the previously created programmes.Methods. Using available data from a national questionnaire survey conducted at theend of 2013 and involving 222 responder radiologists, we compared the main professionalquality standards of radiologists working in the screening programmes establishedduring the period 2000-2012 with those working in the screening programmes createdfrom 1990 to 1999.Results. The former reported more years of clinical experience in breast imaging and agreater clinical mammogram reading volume than the latter. Conversely, they dedicatedless working time to breast imaging, were less likely to participate in the diagnostic assessmentof screen-detected lesions, to work in large-staffed screening centres, and to have ascreening and a total mammogram reading volume (SMRV and TMRV) ≥ 5000 per year.Conclusions. The level of most professional quality criteria of Italian mammographyscreening radiologists has decreased over time. As SMRV and TMRV are important predictorsof diagnostic accuracy, we can expect a lower interpretation performance of radiologistsworking in the recently created screening programmes.