Associations between 24/7 workforce coverage, organizational challenges, and well-being of emergency radiologists: a national survey

Background: The last decade has seen a surge in the demand for imaging exams in emergency radiology (ER), necessitating an evolution in organizational systems for departments offering round-the-clock care, while safeguarding patient care quality and physician well-being to prevent burnout.

Purpose: To develop a nationwide overview of ER organizations in France and identify structures that promote job satisfaction.

Material and methods: Two surveys were sent to 709 radiological centers across France from March to June 2022, inquiring about organizational aspects and quality of life (QOL), incorporating four validated QOL questionnaires. The organization of each center was mapped, and correlations between respondent characteristics and mental health were analyzed using Pearson's and Wilcoxon tests.

Results: A total of 284 centers answered the organizational survey, with a response rate of about 41.6%. Among them, there were 32 university hospitals, 208 general hospitals, 2 teaching army hospitals, and 42 private facilities. Of these, night-time operations showed 14% on-site coverage, 12% on-call from home, 69% utilized external teleradiology, and 4% used in-house teleradiology. These trends persisted over weekends and holidays. Regarding the quality of working life, academic, general, and private radiologists are more satisfied with their practice compared to trainees. Depersonalization, part of the three dimensions of burnout, was high in every class, at 60% (n = 210/350).

Conclusion: Outside of university hospitals, most radiology centers in France no longer have on-site radiologists during off hours. Residents are prone to lower job satisfaction and quality of life than more experienced radiologists.

Clinical relevance statement: The survey illustrates how French ER is structured, pointing out the escalating significance of teleradiology and noting that radiologists generally experience high job satisfaction while also confronting typical organizational challenges.

Key points: The need for continuous radiology coverage comes with unique logistical challenges, especially in ER. Night shifts show a significant reliance on teleradiology services, especially by external companies. Pay, shift patterns, and seniority affect the well-being of emergency radiologists, particularly the residents.