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IR clinical volume linked to higher complexity procedural work
IRs who practice almost exclusively in their specialty provide more clinical evaluation and management visits for their patients and perform more complex procedures than those who do a higher share of diagnostic imaging, according to a new analysis published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology by the Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute in collaboration with SIR and the American College of Radiology. The paper analyzed national Medicare data of 30,467 radiologists and interventional radiologists and revealed wide variance in IR work concentration, reflecting the competing demand of diagnostic imaging. Nationally in 2022, there were only 1,366 interventional radiologists who did over 90% IR work. That number doubled to 2,859 IRs when the threshold was lowered to >50%. “This study affirms that when interventional radiologists are afforded the time to evaluate and follow their patients, the complexity and value of the care they provide increases,” said Robert A. Lookstein, MD, SIR president, in a press release. “Protecting dedicated IR time to see patients in office hours is not merely an operational concern—it is fundamental to preserving the physician–patient relationship that defines our specialty and enables IRs to deliver comprehensive, longitudinal care that measurably improves patient outcomes.”