Future of Radiology

[ptstanto]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I recently read an article regarding the possible reduction in the amount of radiologists needed based on computerized transmission to other countries where a reading will be considerably cheaper. Any thoughts on how this might effect the future of budding radiologists.
Unfortunately I can't post a link to the article but it was in the Jan 7th edition at www.startribune.com " Charles Schumer and Paul Craig Roberts: Driving jobs offshore isn't the way free trade is supposed to work"

Thanks

 

[eddieberetta]

Radiology is a dying specialty. The truth is, imaging is EASY. Foreign film readers can be cheaply trained and in the short term, all north american imaging will likely be shipped off to foreign countries for pennies on the dollar. After that, the other specialties will clue in to how simple radiology is, and will quickly pick up all the radiology they need by either adding 1 or 2 week radiology blocks into their residencies or by simply taking CME courses on imaging.

If they have any questions, they can always check the over-read done by the overseas film reader.

In the long term, we will surely see the specialty melt away as non-physicians train to overread films for the ordering clinician. People will undergo focussed study-specific 1 week courses strainght out of (or during) high school (i.e "CxR reader").

In the end it won't matter; all the film interpretation will be done by computer anyways.

So my advice to you is DO NOT go into radiology. Do you want to be replaced by foreign MDs, high school graduates and ultimately machines?!?! You will be MUCH happier and your job will be a lot safer in specialties where your personal intervention is SAVING LIVES every day, specialties like internal medicine, neurology, etc.

Good luck...

 

[Goober]

Step slowly away from the bong.

It's ok, the men in white coats are coming, they will make you feel much better.

 

[dochuffman]

someone get this guy some risperdal for the doomsday voices he is hearing in his head... and some cyanide to kill this thread

 

[superdevil]

high-school graduates scanning for tumors? um, yah, i'm sure the AMA would be totally cool with that...

 

[Primate]

Eddieberetta

Man, you're gonna need a surgeon to remove your tongue from your cheek.

Beautiful.

 

[Rajshah]

Radiology has a grim outlook. There will be less need for radiologists as other specialties incorporate it into their training.
However for the time being it is safe and I would rather be a radiologist than an internist who works so hard for so little.
But by all means everyone don't apply for Radiology - Hopefully some positions will open up for me then MUHAAAAAAA!!!!!!

 

[bustbones26]

Maybe having films read by foreigners will reduce the need for american rads to read films, but let me ask you, who is going to do invasive rads? Can't ship a patient to another country to have an angiogram performed??

 

[ptstanto]

As a 3rd year med student considering radiology, the article concerned me quite a bit. I'm fairly competitive at this point and think I could match, but if this is a legitimate concern, I'd have to reconsider. Why go into a dying field. IR remains a possibility but would like the option of doing diagnostics. Thanks for all the responses.

 

[ncalcate]

While I don't entirely agree with all of the eddiberetta's dire predictions, I think it is a valid concern. You just have to look at a history of business in this country to see why.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the US was a manufacturing powerhouse. Where are all the manufacturing jobs now? China. Mexico. More recently, most of the Fortune 100 companies have outsourced call centers, tech support, software development, and other functions to India, Russia, and China. Simply put, if you can get someone else to do it cheaper, you will. That is why the U.S. is the richest country in the world - at the expense of many of its blue and white collar workers.

Since there are areas of radiology where the radiologist needs no patient interaction, those functions CAN AND WILL be outsourced to trained docs in India and other nations. It is only a matter of time. Might be 20 years. But it will happen. These won't be high school graduates evaluating films, just highly trained foreign doctors.

A typical software engineer in this country makes about 100K. You can get an Indian software engineer in Bombay to do the same task for 20K a year. The economics are extraordinarily compelling. Call me naive and uninformed (I am just a medical student), but I believe that many non-invasive radiology tasks can be shipped overseas, just like the development of the web browser I am using right now was shipped off to Bombay by Microsoft.

 

[Whisker Barrel Cortex]

I disagree with the thought that radiology will be highly outsourced. This is the practice of medicine and peoples lives at stake, not a computer program or customer service. Quite a different animal altogether. Last time I checked, you do not need a licence to be a programmer. Radiologists are medical doctors and must be licenced in the the state they practice and for most positions must be Board Certified, meaning they passed all three stages of radiology specialty certification. So no, I am not the least bit worried that radiology will be substantially outsourced. The hoops they must jump through to become board certified and licensed radiologists in the US are just too much effort for any benefit they may achieve.

 

[pez]

All it's going to take to end that is one foreign radiologist making a mistake. Do you think patients, insurance companies, and employers are going to stand paying hundreds of dollars to have a foreign trained doctor dictate which direction their helathcare is going to go?

 

[wannaberad]

I think what they do is have an American MD sign off on the readings they've shipped offshore so the lawyers still have someone to sue. So you still have some jobs over here, just not many.

 

[shag]

Originally posted by eddieberetta
Radiology is a dying specialty. The truth is, imaging is EASY. Foreign film readers can be cheaply trained and in the short term, all north american imaging will likely be shipped off to foreign countries for pennies on the dollar.

Eddieberetta is absolutely right. Actually, its 17 year Russian girls who will scan and read for "400 roubles (less than ?10)", instead of Indian radiologists as suggested above.

See this story on the Future of Radiology!

I'm really glad that I'm going in to surgery, where my livelihood isn't jeopardized by Russian kids 🙂

 

[Docxter]

First of all EddieBeretta was joking and making fun of those who think radiology will go away. Secondly, the only thing that may jeopardize your livelihood is your stupidity to fall for these scams (of course, only if you are not joking too; in case you are joking, well, forget what I said).

 

[shag]

Originally posted by Docxter
(of course, only if you are not joking too; in case you are joking, well, forget what I said).

Give me a break. How can I forget what you said. Your comment demonstrates extreme ignorance. Don't you know that if something is posted on a web site, then it must be true.

For example, check out this site: Physiology of Penis Enlargement.

Obviously, the medical profession has missed the boat on this one. For years, Urologists have been prescribing testerone injections and surgically implanting pumps. These idiots are obviously incompetant because they haven't figured out that all you need to do to enlarge penis size is drink lots of water and increase your insulin intake.

-
-
-
-
-
-
In all honesty, I am just making a joke. My apologies for inserting lounge-like comments in this forum and any ambiguous language that suggests in any way that I was being serious. When I saw X-ray Russian girl on the web site in my original post, I couldn't help sharing it.

The main question is: After my hospital hires all Russian X-ray girls after disbanding the rads department, I wonder if the CT/MRI/CXR girl on call will return my pages after she leaves the hospital at 1:00 PM on her home call day while I'm stuck on call in house.

 

[MacGyver]

Originally posted by bustbones26
Maybe having films read by foreigners will reduce the need for american rads to read films, but let me ask you, who is going to do invasive rads? Can't ship a patient to another country to have an angiogram performed??

Interventional/invasive rads accounts for less than 10% of the radiology profession.

 

[MacGyver]

Originally posted by Whisker Barrel Cortex
I disagree with the thought that radiology will be highly outsourced. This is the practice of medicine and peoples lives at stake, not a computer program or customer service. Quite a different animal altogether. Last time I checked, you do not need a licence to be a programmer. Radiologists are medical doctors and must be licenced in the the state they practice and for most positions must be Board Certified, meaning they passed all three stages of radiology specialty certification. So no, I am not the least bit worried that radiology will be substantially outsourced. The hoops they must jump through to become board certified and licensed radiologists in the US are just too much effort for any benefit they may achieve.

Who says the American Board of Radiology wont come to some kind of agreement to give licenses out to foreign radiologists?

they have been discussing this, BTW.

 

[Goober]

Originally posted by MacGyver
Who says the American Board of Radiology wont come to some kind of agreement to give licenses out to foreign radiologists?

they have been discussing this, BTW.

Because the ABR doesn't give out licenses🙄

It confers board certification to people that have completed radiology residencies. If you are saying they are going to give out American board certification to foreign rads- fat chance.

 

[Energon]

maybe, radiology will train all its residents to do some form of interventonal procedures. Diag on its own will find its way to india. The price is so low and their docs are really skilled FACT like it or not.
HOwever, the "drying up of specialty" happens within our own borders as well, look at where interventional cards is headed, they might turn CT surgeons into hobos