Telephone assessment of new hernia referrals-is it possible?

Purpose: Utilisation of remote clinics is increasing in healthcare settings worldwide. During the height of the COVID pandemic, our UK-based teaching hospital has trialled telephone assessment for new patients presenting with primary hernias. Selected cases are listed for elective repair of primary hernia direct from telephone clinic assessment.

Lessons from surgery and anaesthesia: evaluation of non-technical skills in interventional radiology.

In the medical profession, surgery and anaesthesia are leading the way in identifying human errors that negatively affect patient safety. Evidence suggests that the implementation of non-technical skills assessments reduces such errors. Interventional Radiology is a procedural based speciality and therefore may also benefit from formal assessment of non-technical skills.