US Radiologists: Jobs Outsourced To India
More hospitals are resorting to so-called “dayhawk” radiology services to read their x-rays.
It’s modeled after the “nighthawk” model, where radiologists (via Shadowfax), in some cases as far away as India, remotely read films in the middle of the night.
Now, the phenomenon is happening during business hours as well, which according to radiologist Giles W. L. Boland, means that “some radiologists can no longer assume long-term job security because their core value proposition can now be outsourced.”
This trend was entirely foreseeable. Cash-strapped hospitals are finding it cheaper to outsource x-ray readings, and furthermore, it seems that both nighthawks and dayhawks provide better service and more timely interpretations. This adds up to a declining need for an in-house radiology staff.
That’s bad news for some. Radiology departments at smaller hospitals may close, and eventually general radiologist salaries will come under pressure.
The answer? Like everything else in medicine, radiology sub-specialists will increasingly be in demand. Expect procedure-based, interventional radiology to grow, since what they do cannot be outsourced. Health care costs will correspondingly rise.
So, like primary care, don’t be surprised if the days of general radiology are numbered.
**This post was originally published at Dr. Kevin Pho’s blog, KevinMD.**
The rise of teleradiology is due to the growing unavailability of radiologists locally, first at night (hence the rise of the nighthawks) and now during the day as well. I'm not sure I would paint teleradiology as the threat to radiology practice; the telerads have come into their own as a market response to the shortage of radiologists in certain geographic markets and times of day. Beyond the chicken-or-egg question, though, it is indisputable that the digital revolution has flattened the earth as far as radiology professional services go, and services will be performed by providers able to deliver the best price/quality proposition.
The rise of teleradiology is due to the growing unavailability of radiologists locally, first at night (hence the rise of the nighthawks) and now during the day as well. I'm not sure I would paint teleradiology as the threat to radiology practice; the telerads have come into their own as a market response to the shortage of radiologists in certain geographic markets and times of day. Beyond the chicken-or-egg question, though, it is indisputable that the digital revolution has flattened the earth as far as radiology professional services go, and services will be performed by providers able to deliver the best price/quality proposition.