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Service Plan Brief for
Outpatient Interventional Radiology Clinic
Teri Crutsinger
Western Governors University
D030: Leadership and Management in Complex Healthcare Systems
Pattie Sunderhaus
July 1, 2021
, 2
Service Plan Brief for Outpatient Interventional Radiology Clinic
Introduction
Interventional Radiology (IR) services have evolved into a clinical specialty as opposed
to a specialty only used for diagnostic purposes in a hospital setting it was previously known as.
The success in the specialty has led to a need for the development of full clinical practice
including an outpatient clinic. This would allow interventional radiologists to more easily
schedule less-invasive procedures, perform consultations, and provide follow-up post-procedure
(Taslakian & Sridhar, 2017). IR is defined as “a medical specialization that involves performing
a range of imaging procedures to obtain images of the inside of the body”. They are able to
interpret imaging to diagnose disease and injury, and perform a wide range of medical
procedures (Interventional Radiology, 2018). Interventional radiologists commonly perform
procedures such as needle biopsies, nephrostomy tube changes, paracentesis, thoracentesis,
catheter/port placements and maintenance, and hemodialysis fistula maintenance. Creating a
clinic where these procedures and patients could be seen would allow patients to be seen in a
clinic setting instead of having to be seen at the hospital. This would help make scheduling
easier, allow interventionalists to follow chronic patients, and decrease the costs associated with
procedures.
Importance
The importance of creating an outpatient interventional radiology clinic would help
improve the efficiency and quality of care for the IR patients. Although there will always be IR
procedures that require longer observation post-procedure or have a high incident for
complication, such as a lung biopsy, there are many other procedures that do not and could be
performed in an outpatient procedural clinic. The target population would be the patients needing
Service Plan Brief for
Outpatient Interventional Radiology Clinic
Teri Crutsinger
Western Governors University
D030: Leadership and Management in Complex Healthcare Systems
Pattie Sunderhaus
July 1, 2021
, 2
Service Plan Brief for Outpatient Interventional Radiology Clinic
Introduction
Interventional Radiology (IR) services have evolved into a clinical specialty as opposed
to a specialty only used for diagnostic purposes in a hospital setting it was previously known as.
The success in the specialty has led to a need for the development of full clinical practice
including an outpatient clinic. This would allow interventional radiologists to more easily
schedule less-invasive procedures, perform consultations, and provide follow-up post-procedure
(Taslakian & Sridhar, 2017). IR is defined as “a medical specialization that involves performing
a range of imaging procedures to obtain images of the inside of the body”. They are able to
interpret imaging to diagnose disease and injury, and perform a wide range of medical
procedures (Interventional Radiology, 2018). Interventional radiologists commonly perform
procedures such as needle biopsies, nephrostomy tube changes, paracentesis, thoracentesis,
catheter/port placements and maintenance, and hemodialysis fistula maintenance. Creating a
clinic where these procedures and patients could be seen would allow patients to be seen in a
clinic setting instead of having to be seen at the hospital. This would help make scheduling
easier, allow interventionalists to follow chronic patients, and decrease the costs associated with
procedures.
Importance
The importance of creating an outpatient interventional radiology clinic would help
improve the efficiency and quality of care for the IR patients. Although there will always be IR
procedures that require longer observation post-procedure or have a high incident for
complication, such as a lung biopsy, there are many other procedures that do not and could be
performed in an outpatient procedural clinic. The target population would be the patients needing
