Justification of doctors' referral for radiological imaging among some Nigerian doctors

Abstract

Introduction: The demand for radiological examination has increased tremendously despite paucity of referring clinicians' knowledge on radiation protection. Reasons to justify these referrals vary. Consequently, the aim of this study is to evaluate the relationship between clinicians' knowledge of radiological imaging dosage to their referral justification and guideline. Materials and Methods: Structured questionnaires were developed with four sections (Section 1, sociodemographic data; Section 2, justification for imaging referral; Section 3, knowledge of radiation dose to patients; Section 4, effect of irradiation). The questionnaires were administered at a previous Nigerian Medical Association National Conference, which took place at Lagos in 2013. Sections 3 and 4 were scored and rated. Results: The respondents gave plausible reasons to refer patients for radiological evaluation despite the observation that majority of them were unaware of the existence of referral guidelines and had poor knowledge on radiation. Only 16 (12.2%) of the respondents had a fair score on knowledge about radiation dose to patients while 110 (84.0%) had poor score. Five (3.8%) of the respondents had good score. Similarly, on identifying effect of radiation, 10 (7.6%) had good score, 4 (3.1%) fair score, and 117 (89.3%) poor score. Conclusion: Most of the referrals of patients for radiological evaluation by the respondents were not based on the standard guidelines. Therefore, it is pertinent that referral guidelines should be developed and implemented and clinicians should be educated and trained on radiation protection.