Donut disturb, dictation in progress
CT scanners have been called the donut of truth. On a shift in the radiology department, the scans will be ordered by the dozen. The complex patients, the undifferentiated patients, the patients awaiting a life-altering diagnosis…most will spend time in the department. Although we may not see them face-to-face, we will still spend a long time with them, examining images, reviewing charts, and discussing findings, as the next steps of their journey may depend on the results of that scan.
Sometimes the scan is a diagnostic CT. Sometimes it’s NHCT (No Human Can Tell). Sometimes it’s a challenge to know the difference – to know when and how to make an important diagnosis, versus when you need to hop on the fence with a waffle maker and hedge trimmers. Evaluating the scans to make these calls is not just black and white – radiology has many shades of grey, both in the images themselves and in the way we interpret their significance. The integration of these aspects in the context of each patient is where radiologists as people can contribute to the care of patients as people.
They say that AI is taking over radiology (and the em dash above). It may have a role to play: last block, we asked AI to lyricize a report, and were jamming to “The Nodule Song (PET-CT Blues with a Twist).” Beyond that? Well, a donut is only as good as the baker, and all that…
So come to the dark side, we have donuts (of truth).
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