Lastly, multidisciplinary care is powerful when establishing your practice. Offering to work with vascular surgery or cardiology (e.g., in a pulmonary embolism response team or abdominal aortic aneurysm program), will go further than the turf wars that tarnish the healthcare system.
Clinical care in and out of the hospital The concept of clinical IR is not new. However, the concept of IR rounding, writing progress notes and seeing patients in the clinic can be new for a local healthcare system. Discussion of the financial feasibility of a clinical IR program is beyond the scope of this editorial. However, there is no doubting the immense value this brings to patients and the future viability of IR. For inpatients, other providers will recognize you as a clinical entity. They will also soon understand they cannot just “order” a procedure but need to put in a consult and hopefully discuss the patient with you.
Hospital systems cannot calculate the true value of interventional radiology. Beyond relative value units, there is real dollar value in shortened length of stay, fewer complications and less cost.
practice. Contact referring physicians often to discuss cases before and after. Remind referring physicians that you will see their patients in the clinic before more complex procedures and follow up afterward. This is especially important when primary care refers to you, so they understand you are a clinician, not just a proceduralist. Offer to provide “lunch and learn” sessions to other practices to educate them and their staff on what service you can provide. Attend tumor board and other multidisciplinary conferences. Seize the opportunity to be a part of committees, grand rounds or M&M conferences. Become involved with medical education by providing noon lectures to local residency and nursing programs. Acquainting yourself with ER and hospitalist providers is a sure way to build your reputation as they hold the key to inpatient referrals.
30 IRQ | FALL 2023
You may need to work with your hospital IT department to develop an IR consult order in the EMR. Coding and billing may be new to you as you start a practice. It is essential to familiarize yourself so that you are properly reimbursed for your consults, progress notes and clinic patients. There are ample resources within SIR to educate yourself.
Having an outpatient clinic is essential if you are to be providing care beyond basic IR procedures. Discussing risks and benefits with patients and developing a relationship for longitudinal care will be key to your success. For example, if you are to perform a TIPS, setting the patient’s expectations and managing their clinical follow-up is compulsory. The opposite (the patient calling their gastroenterologist or primary care during follow-up) will result in poor patient care and loss of respect.
Contracts with the community hospital This topic is fraught with complexity and will be unique to each locale. Hospital systems cannot calculate the true value of interventional radiology. Beyond relative value units, there is real dollar value in shortened length of stay,
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