Identifying Radiological Needs of Referring Clinicians

To provide prospective information about quality- and satisfaction-related product features in radiology, a customer-centered approach for acquiring clinicians' requirements and their prioritizations is essential. We introduced the Kano model for the first time in radiology to obtain such information. A Kano questionnaire, consisting of pairs of questions regarding 13 clinician requirements related to computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) access and report turnaround time (RTT), was developed and administered. Each requirement was assigned a Kano category, and its satisfaction and dissatisfaction coefficients were calculated and presented in a Kano diagram. The data were stratified based on different clinics and on staff and resident clinicians. The time interval was evaluated between the completion of an examination and the first attempt to access the report by a clinician. Consultation for modality selection and scheduling and access to CT within 24 h and RTT within 8 to 24 h were considered as must-be requirements. Access to CT within 4 h and within 8 h, access to MRI within 8 h and within 24 h, and access to RTT within 4 h were one-dimensional requirements. The extension of operation time for CT or MRI, as well as MRI access within 4 h, was considered attractive. Eight out of nine clinics considered RTT within 8 h as a must-be requirement. There were differences in responses both among different clinics and between staff and resident clinicians. Access attempts to reports by clinicians in the first 4 h after the examination completion accounted for 65 % of CTs and 49 % of MRIs.