Clipping Board » Medical Harm ─ Unnecessary or inappropriate medical procedures can also cause harm.
2011-06-08 Breaking News [Central News Agency]
The Control Yuan investigation found that the Department of Health, Executive Yuan, failed to implement existing quality management regulations for computed tomography (CT) scans, leading to repeated inappropriate re-examinations and unnecessarily increasing public radiation exposure risks. The Control Yuan today issued a corrective measure against the Department of Health.
The Control Yuan passed a proposal by Control Yuan members Cheng Jen-hung and Chien Lin Hui-chun to censure the Department of Health. The members stated that CT scans, which provide precise diagnostic results without invasive procedures, have become a crucial tool in clinical diagnosis in recent years.
However, Cheng Jen-hung noted that foreign studies show the radiation dose absorbed during a CT scan is 10 to 100 times higher than that of a standard X-ray examination. Epidemiological surveys also indicate that CT scans may increase the risk of cancer in patients. Therefore, clinical use must emphasize justification and ensure diagnostic quality to avoid unnecessary radiation exposure.
Cheng Jen-hung and Chien Lin Hui-chun's investigation revealed that the Department of Health did not enforce existing CT scan quality management regulations, nor did it establish a comprehensive accountability mechanism. As a result, legal provisions remained ineffective, management became superficial, and imaging quality failed to improve, leading to repeated unnecessary re-examinations, increased public radiation exposure risks, and compromised patient rights and safety.
Cheng Jen-hung stated that between 2006 and 2010, the Bureau of National Health Insurance analyzed the primary reasons for repeated CT scans on the same patient within 90 days. Apart from medical necessity, factors included "poor image quality" and "greater trust in self-produced images and reports."
He added that while the Department of Health has regulations requiring the discontinuation of outdated CT equipment producing poor-quality images that affect diagnostic accuracy, local health bureaus have never enforced this. Furthermore, the Bureau of National Health Insurance, during its periodic inspections, found hospitals with substandard CT image quality but never referred these cases to the authorities for investigation.
The Department of Health's hospital evaluations from 2006 to 2010 showed that nearly half of regional and district hospitals lacked an image quality management system. Cross-referencing with the Bureau of National Health Insurance's image quality surveys, an average of 10% of CT images were unclear or inadequate, with nearly 20% of district hospitals under the Taipei branch reporting poor image quality.
The Control Yuan members urged the Executive Yuan to direct relevant agencies overseeing health and radiation protection to align domestic CT scan radiation protection policies with international standards, improve public medical exposure quality, and establish a cross-ministerial collaboration mechanism. They also called for setting "diagnostic reference dose levels" to ensure the quality of radiological diagnostics. 1000608
Source: http:/ / news. chinatimes. com/ p……/ 130502/ 132011060801072. html
Poor CT Scan Image Quality: Control Yuan Issues Correction
The Control Yuan investigation found that the Department of Health, Executive Yuan, failed to implement existing quality management regulations for computed tomography (CT) scans, leading to repeated inappropriate re-examinations and unnecessarily increasing public radiation exposure risks. The Control Yuan today issued a corrective measure against the Department of Health.
The Control Yuan passed a proposal by Control Yuan members Cheng Jen-hung and Chien Lin Hui-chun to censure the Department of Health. The members stated that CT scans, which provide precise diagnostic results without invasive procedures, have become a crucial tool in clinical diagnosis in recent years.
However, Cheng Jen-hung noted that foreign studies show the radiation dose absorbed during a CT scan is 10 to 100 times higher than that of a standard X-ray examination. Epidemiological surveys also indicate that CT scans may increase the risk of cancer in patients. Therefore, clinical use must emphasize justification and ensure diagnostic quality to avoid unnecessary radiation exposure.
Cheng Jen-hung and Chien Lin Hui-chun's investigation revealed that the Department of Health did not enforce existing CT scan quality management regulations, nor did it establish a comprehensive accountability mechanism. As a result, legal provisions remained ineffective, management became superficial, and imaging quality failed to improve, leading to repeated unnecessary re-examinations, increased public radiation exposure risks, and compromised patient rights and safety.
Cheng Jen-hung stated that between 2006 and 2010, the Bureau of National Health Insurance analyzed the primary reasons for repeated CT scans on the same patient within 90 days. Apart from medical necessity, factors included "poor image quality" and "greater trust in self-produced images and reports."
He added that while the Department of Health has regulations requiring the discontinuation of outdated CT equipment producing poor-quality images that affect diagnostic accuracy, local health bureaus have never enforced this. Furthermore, the Bureau of National Health Insurance, during its periodic inspections, found hospitals with substandard CT image quality but never referred these cases to the authorities for investigation.
The Department of Health's hospital evaluations from 2006 to 2010 showed that nearly half of regional and district hospitals lacked an image quality management system. Cross-referencing with the Bureau of National Health Insurance's image quality surveys, an average of 10% of CT images were unclear or inadequate, with nearly 20% of district hospitals under the Taipei branch reporting poor image quality.
The Control Yuan members urged the Executive Yuan to direct relevant agencies overseeing health and radiation protection to align domestic CT scan radiation protection policies with international standards, improve public medical exposure quality, and establish a cross-ministerial collaboration mechanism. They also called for setting "diagnostic reference dose levels" to ensure the quality of radiological diagnostics. 1000608
Source: http:/ / news. chinatimes. com/ p……/ 130502/ 132011060801072. html