Safety-Net Academic Hospital Experience in Following Up Noncritical Yet Potentially Significant Radiologist Recommendations.

Objective: In this retrospective study, we identified the types of noncritical recommendations radiologists issued over a 15-day period, the percentage of noncritical radiology recommendations that were not acted on or acknowledged in the medical records, potential causes for recommendations not being acted on, and the potential risk of harm to patients.

Materials And Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of radiology reports and patient records from January 1, 2014, to January 15, 2014, at a large tertiary academic center and regional safety-net hospital.

Results: A total of 6851 reports were reviewed; 857 (13%) contained at least one noncritical recommendation, with 978 total recommendations.