I think there are several effects of the national shortage of Radiology Physicians (as opposed to radiology techs).
One effect is delay in diagnosis. As the volume of imaging increases, overloaded radiologists will see the scans later, resulting in a delay in diagnosis.
Another effect will be seen in emergency departments. Smaller ERs will have a difficult time finding night time radiology coverage, especially for plain film x-rays. The result is that ER doctors, who have little formal radiology training, may miss findings that will only be relayed to the patient the next day, usually after the patient has been sent home from the ER. This includes subtle bone fractures, lung findings such as nodules, and others.
As it becomes more difficult to find a radiologist to read studies, many clinicians will make decisions based on their own opinion of CT scans, MRIs, etc rather than conferring with the radiologist. This can also result in delay of care or inadequate care. Usually, the most evident and dangerous findings can be seen by clinical physicians, however, many of the more subtle or difficult to diagnose findings will be missed until a radiologist sees the images. An example would be a surgeon missing an early inflamed appendix or subtly thickened bowel on a CT scan in a person with abdominal pain.
