British Journal of Radiology (2005) 78, 581
© 2005 British Institute of Radiology
doi: 10.1259/bjr/37038966
Are you sitting comfortably?
D MacVicar
In this month's issue of the British Journal of Radiology, Prabhu and co-workers have made a contribution which may be greeted with a wry smile in many hospitals across the UK who have acquired PACS (picture archiving and communications system) or are planning to install such a system. In their article, the authors raise many important and salient points [1]. It is useful to have scientific evidence to back up concepts which appear to be commonsense. The current political climate is one in which attitudes towards medical professionals are far from sympathetic. Radiologists and colleagues have become used to working in discomfort which would be considered intolerable in other walks of life. Installation of PACS should be viewed as an opportunity to improve the working environment, although the authors point out that without thought and planning, things could become worse.
In an existing radiology department, it is not simply a question of removing a light box and planting a workstation in front of the remaining brackets and crumbling plaster. Ideally work surfaces and chairs suitable for computer viewing should be provided; temperature and humidity controls are also necessary because of excess heat generated by computer workstations and monitors. The fact that excessively high temperatures may shorten the life of monitors and other components of PACS units may prove to be a powerful argument in favour of installing adequate air-conditioning, whereas pointing out the reduced efficiency and increased discomfort of staff may fail to impress. Regular breaks are recommended, although it could be argued that these are just as necessary when viewing analogue images. The authors also point out that digital dictation and speech recognition systems work best in the presence of optimised sound ergonomics, which means that telephones, noisy colleagues and other background activity should be dampened or removed. These distractions are of course familiar to all practising radiologists using existing or new technology.
Despite inevitable teething troubles with PACS, most radiologists and clinical colleagues appear to have a very positive attitude [2, 3]. Image quality on up-to-date equipment frequently draws gasps of admiration. However nearly half of radiologists surveyed reported themselves dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the environment in which they are asked to use these systems [4]. It is a good time to use the installation of PACS as a way of improving our workplace environment. The National Programme for Information Technology (NPfIT) accepts that some re-designing and reconstruction of radiology departments and hospitals may be necessary for installation of radiology information systems and PACS, and new projects include in their initial plans a heading of "enabling work". Radiologists and colleagues involved in planning these systems must insist that ergonomic issues are given due consideration and compromise as a result of cost implications is avoided wherever possible.
References
- Prabhu SP, Gandhi S, Goddard PR. Ergonomics of digital imaging. Br J Radiol 2005;78:582–6.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
- Dundas DD. Installation of PACS system. Br J Radiol 2005;78:480–2.[Free Full Text]
- Pilling JR. Picture archiving and communication systems: the users' view. Br J Radiol 2003;76:519–24.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
- Rumreich LL, Johnson AJ. From traditional reading rooms to a soft copy environment: radiologist satisfaction survey. J Digit Imaging 2003;16:262–9.[CrossRef][Medline]
