Friday, April 25, 2008

Increase In Diagnostic Imaging Mainly Due To Self-Referring Physicians

Physicians who refer patients to their own facilities or machines for scans account for much of the increase in diagnostic imaging ordered for privately insured patients said a Baylor College of Medicine expert in a commentary that appears in the current issue of the journal Medical Care.

Based on a study also appearing in the same issue, Dr. Vivian Ho, professor of medicine at BCM and associate professor of economics at Rice University, wrote: "Increases in utilization rates were substantially higher for scans performed by self-referring physicians than for images that originated from a referral to a radiologist or hospital."

source: Medical News Today

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