ECR 2014: EuroSafe Imaging campaign launched by ESR

VIENNA—As the European Congress of Radiology (ECR) 2014 kicked off yesterday, the founding European Society of Radiology (ESR) launched a partnership and project with the American College of Radiology, officially titled EuroSafe Imaging, with an aim to improve adoption of clinical protocols for safer, more appropriate use of radiological procedures.

Guy Frija, MD, ESR president and consulting radiologist for the imaging department of the Georges Pompidou European Hospital as well as a professor of radiology at the Rene Descartes University in Paris, addressed the society’s concern of appropriate use during Thursday’s press conference by noting a statistic based on U.S. research that suggests one third of radiological examinations are not clinically justified or useful for the patient.

“The problem is not guidelines—we have guidelines…the problem is how to improve their use,” commented Frija.  

ESR has announced an agreement to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Multidisciplinary European Low Dose Initiative, a program among European Union member states established in 2009 focusing on low-dose radiation risk research and coordinating with non-governmental organizations like the World Health Organization.

The society is also launching a website dedicated to the program and formulating criteria to revamp current guidelines for safe radiological examinations that will in turn inform a new training curriculum.