Abstract
Objective
Frequent telephone calls to radiology departments are a major source of workflow interruption and inefficiency. Asynchronous messaging integrated within an electronic medical record (EMR) may provide a more efficient communication pathway. This study evaluated the impact of implementing an EMR-integrated chat function, supported by targeted education initiatives, on communication volumes and protocolling workflow in a tertiary academic radiology department.Methods
A retrospective pre- and post-intervention study compared workflow metrics across 20 matched weekdays before and after implementation. The primary outcome was in-hours telephone calls per weekday to the duty radiologist. Secondary outcomes included studies protocolled per day, time-to-protocol, total communication events (telephone calls plus messages), workload-adjusted communication events (communication events per 100 protocolled studies), and chat responsiveness. Comparisons were performed using the Mann-Whitney U test, with workload-adjusted contact rates analysed using a Poisson model.Results
Median telephone calls to the duty radiologist decreased from 181 (IQR 166 - 220) to 82 (IQR 60 - 103) per day (p Discussion
Implementation of asynchronous messaging, supported by targeted education initiatives, was associated with a substantial reduction in both telephone calls and total communication volume (calls plus messages) without affecting protocolling productivity. Chat messages were reviewed and answered in a timely manner. These findings support a scalable strategy to reduce communication-related interruptions in high-volume radiology departments.