By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    magnesium water can be good for your health but you can't have too much
    Is Drinking Magnesium Water Good for Your Health?
    October 17, 2023
    common misconseptions about brain injuries
    4 Common Myths and Misunderstandings About Brain Injuries
    February 5, 2023
    get a career in medical device sales
    What Are the Benefits of Attending Medical Sales College?
    April 10, 2023
    Latest News
    How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
    July 17, 2025
    Beyond Nutrition: Everyday Foods That Support Whole-Body Health
    June 15, 2025
    The Wide-Ranging Benefits of Magnesium Supplements
    June 11, 2025
    The Best Home Remedies for Migraines
    June 5, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Elective Coronary Stenting: A Case in Context
    August 3, 2011
    PSA screening: Does It or Doesn’t It?
    March 16, 2012
    Rick Perry Needs To Make Up His Mind
    September 19, 2011
    Latest News
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
    How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
    July 17, 2025
    How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
    July 17, 2025
    Let Your Lawyer Handle the Work Before You Pay Medical Costs
    July 6, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: AHRA 2013: IRIS and the Importance of Dose Reduction Initiatives in Medical Imaging
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Diagnostics > AHRA 2013: IRIS and the Importance of Dose Reduction Initiatives in Medical Imaging
Diagnostics

AHRA 2013: IRIS and the Importance of Dose Reduction Initiatives in Medical Imaging

Rich Pulvino
Rich Pulvino
Share
4 Min Read
medical imaging
SHARE

medical imagingIRIS (Image Right, Image Safe) is a commitment that started at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (D-H) to ensure that not only was dose being reduced, but that patients were receiving only necessary medical imaging exams. Karen Burgess, M.

medical imagingIRIS (Image Right, Image Safe) is a commitment that started at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center (D-H) to ensure that not only was dose being reduced, but that patients were receiving only necessary medical imaging exams. Karen Burgess, M. Ed., RTRM, of D-H presented on Monday, July 29, about IRIS and how it takes awareness and education to properly reduce dose to patients while still providing them with quality care.

IRIS was inspired by the Image Gently campaign, which seeks to promote radiation protection in the imaging of children. This is not a new cause in the medical imaging field, but Burgess explained how D-H was a textbook example of how dose reduction can be achieved within a large medical system, and how it takes many processes to make it happen.

Burgess commented on how the medical imaging field has seen a near doubling in ionization exposure over the past three decades. One area this continues to grow is in relation to sports injuries, particularly in children ages 5-14. In total, about 750,000 medical images are conducted per year in this age group on account of sports injuries and that number is only growing larger. With a trend like this, efforts are needed to reduce unnecessary imaging and that involves including the healthcare provider as well as the patient in the education about medical imaging exams.

More Read

Global healthcare market
Staying Competitive – Financing Medical Equipment and Technology in the Global Healthcare Market
8 Proven Tips on Finding Difficult Veins
Clinical Collaboration: The Evolution of the VNA
New Medical Laboratories Are the Key to Diagnostics Research
BioPharma Beat: The Uberization of Healthcare – A Silly Extrapolation

In 2010, Burgess’s colleague, Dr. Peter Spiegel addressed the imaging controversies and emphasized the need for a more enforced and balanced approach. D-H needed to improve on addressing patient concerns about radiation safety, and from that, IRIS was born. It’s mission statement reads as such:

Promote patient safety in medical imaging by initiating, supporting and coordinating  activities designed to reduce radiation dose while maintaining appropriate standards of imaging quality; ensure that referring clinicians have all necessary resources and incentives to make appropriate decisions in the ordering of imaging procedures; and raise public awareness of the uses, benefits, limitations, and risks of medical imaging.

From this, D-H instituted several key procedures to ensure it was living up to the IRIS mission statement. These included such activities as creating a dedicated position of “radiation safety officer,” requests for CT must be subject to a verification protocol to ensure that low dose or radiation free alternatives (MRI, ultrasound) are ruled out prior to the CT, and adherence to voluntary ACR and TJC guidelines, which are more comprehensive and stringent than required by regulations in New Hampshire.

In her conclusion, Burgess left off with key points that attendees could take away to institute their own initiative similar to IRIS to help reduce dose in their hospitals. These included seeking a physician project champion who could lead the initiative, creating a mission statement, and defining clear and attainable goals for the initiative.

Dose reduction, while an ever-important trend in the medical imaging landscape, can be difficult to achieve on account of the exams being a necessity to diagnostics and patient health. Careful planning and organizational initiatives to make dose reduction a reality can be to the key to accomplishing this and ensuring that patients are taken care of to the highest degree in our facility.

(medical imaging / shutterstock)

TAGGED:IRISmedical imaging
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
Global Healthcare Policy & Law
July 17, 2025
paramedics in surgical gloves and masks
How Health Choices and Legal Actions Intersect After an Injury
Health care
July 16, 2025
a woman giving a key
How Probate Planning Shapes the Future of Your Estate and Family Care
Health
July 16, 2025
a woman with kinesio tapes on her back arm
How communities and healthcare providers can address slip and fall injuries with legal awareness
Health care
July 16, 2025

You Might also Like

How health quality measures became a jungle: Joanne Kenen

August 29, 2015

Quick Blood Test to Spot SCID In Infants

March 22, 2011
healthcare in Brazil
DiagnosticsGlobal Healthcare

Pioneering Healthcare in Brazil

February 26, 2014

Fertility Focus Improves Diagnoses and Treatment of Infertility

May 2, 2011
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?