Safe Clinical Use of Fluoroscopy
Course #90471 - $60 -
- Participation Instructions
- Review the course material online or in print.
- Complete the course evaluation.
- Review your Transcript to view and print your Certificate of Completion. Your date of completion will be the date (Pacific Time) the course was electronically submitted for credit, with no exceptions. Partial credit is not available.
Fluoroscopy has many uses in modern medicine, expanding beyond standard x-rays films. While these procedures have clinical benefits, they are not without risks, particularly related to radiation exposure. A major focus of this course is on the risks and average doses patients and clinicians incur when undergoing fluoroscopy procedures. The overall goal and purpose of radiation safety and dose management is to conduct individual radiation risk assessment for each patient, providing the patient involved with an opportunity to give informed consent relating to their radiation risk. Studies indicate that improved clinician education can help to limit radiation dose and associated complications.
- INTRODUCTION
- HISTORY OF FLUOROSCOPY
- DEFINITION OF TERMS
- AN OVERVIEW OF FLUOROSCOPY
- CLINICAL USE OF FLUOROSCOPY
- OVERVIEW OF RADIATION EXPOSURE
- RADIATION DOSE MEASUREMENT AND DOCUMENTATION
- TENETS OF RADIATION SAFETY IN CLINICAL PRACTICE
- SPECIAL POPULATIONS
- CULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR INFORMED CONSENT
- CONCLUSION
- Works Cited
- Evidence-Based Practice Recommendations Citations
This course is designed for physicians, nurses, radiology technicians, surgical technicians, and all healthcare staff involved in ensuring safe clinical use of fluoroscopy.
The purpose of this course is to provide healthcare providers with an understanding of the challenges encountered when using fluoroscopy in clinical practice and the tenets of safe fluoroscopy use in clinical practice.
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
- Outline the history of fluoroscopy.
- Define terms used in discussion of fluoroscopy.
- Describe the components of a standard fluoroscopy unit.
- Discuss the use of contrast media in obtaining fluoroscopy images.
- Identify limitations of fluoroscopy in diagnostic and interventional radiology.
- Analyze the various uses of fluoroscopy in diagnostic and interventional radiology.
- Evaluate key issues in radiation exposure and potential deterministic and stochastic effects.
- Outline the various ways that patient and staff radiation doses are measured and documented.
- Identify tenets of radiation safety when working with fluoroscopy.
- Describe radiation safety issues for special populations, including pregnant women and children.
Berthina Coleman, RN, MD, is a registered nurse and resident who has worked extensively in various healthcare fields. She obtained her Bachelors of Science degree in Nursing from Grambling State University in 2006. She then went on to pursue further education, graduating with a Medical Degree from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in 2014. Dr. Coleman consistently worked as a nurse during her medical training process, holding several leadership positions. She firmly believes that the nursing perspective is critical in providing the best care to an ever-changing patient population.
Contributing faculty, Berthina Coleman, RN, MD, has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
John M. Leonard, MD
Jane C. Norman, RN, MSN, CNE, PhD
Shannon E. Smith, MHSC, CST, CSFA
The division planners have disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
Sarah Campbell
The Director of Development and Academic Affairs has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
The purpose of NetCE is to provide challenging curricula to assist healthcare professionals to raise their levels of expertise while fulfilling their continuing education requirements, thereby improving the quality of healthcare.
Our contributing faculty members have taken care to ensure that the information and recommendations are accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The publisher disclaims any liability, loss or damage incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents. Participants are cautioned about the potential risk of using limited knowledge when integrating new techniques into practice.
It is the policy of NetCE not to accept commercial support. Furthermore, commercial interests are prohibited from distributing or providing access to this activity to learners.
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The role of implicit biases on healthcare outcomes has become a concern, as there is some evidence that implicit biases contribute to health disparities, professionals' attitudes toward and interactions with patients, quality of care, diagnoses, and treatment decisions. This may produce differences in help-seeking, diagnoses, and ultimately treatments and interventions. Implicit biases may also unwittingly produce professional behaviors, attitudes, and interactions that reduce patients' trust and comfort with their provider, leading to earlier termination of visits and/or reduced adherence and follow-up. Disadvantaged groups are marginalized in the healthcare system and vulnerable on multiple levels; health professionals' implicit biases can further exacerbate these existing disadvantages.
Interventions or strategies designed to reduce implicit bias may be categorized as change-based or control-based. Change-based interventions focus on reducing or changing cognitive associations underlying implicit biases. These interventions might include challenging stereotypes. Conversely, control-based interventions involve reducing the effects of the implicit bias on the individual's behaviors. These strategies include increasing awareness of biased thoughts and responses. The two types of interventions are not mutually exclusive and may be used synergistically.