More interventional radiologists are needed in Ireland to provide life-saving treatments to patients, the National Clinical Programme of Radiology has said.

It has recommended the training of approximately 30 additional interventional radiologists to enable access to life-saving care 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Radiology refers to the use of imaging technology, such as CT scans, ultrasound, MRI and X-rays to see inside the body and detect various diseases. Interventional radiology is a growing practice that involves the use of similar imaging technology to perform minimally invasive life-saving surgical procedures, such as the insertion of stents into arteries and veins, blocking arteries that are actively bleeding and local tumour treatment in cancer.

The risk to the patient is minimised and procedures involve less pain and less recovery time when compared with open surgery.

The National Clinical Programme of Radiology made its recommendation for 30 additional interventional radiologists in its report, Model of Care for Interventional Radiology, at the opening of the RCSI Faculty of Radiologists’ Annual Scientific Meeting in Dublin on September 29.

The Model of Care report was developed for Ireland as part of a Europe-wide strategy, to provide equity of access to interventional radiology and life-saving minimally invasive surgery to patients. 

The US, Canada and a number of European countries have recognised interventional radiology as a distinct specialty and European medical societies are now working to achieve speciality status for interventional radiology in all EU countries.

According to Prof Colin Cantwell, a consultant radiologist at St Vincent’s University Hospital, healthcare systems worldwide are recognising the role of interventional radiology in the delivery of organ and life-saving treatment for patients. 

He said that 24/7 access to interventional radiology “can make a big difference to patient outcomes, particularly in trauma, cancer, obstetrics and urology”.

“Ireland needs at least an additional 150 radiologists over the next decade, including approximately 30 interventional radiologists to provide this service and bring us in line with the European average of eight consultant radiologists per 100,000 population. This report sets out a path to this goal and ultimately to the improvement of patient care and outcomes in Ireland,” Prof Cantwell commented.

According to consultant radiologist, Prof Michael Lee, of the Department of Radiology at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, interventional radiation procedures “are vital in the provision of life-saving care for a wide and growing range of conditions”.

“They offer an alternative to more invasive surgery that results in shorter recovery times for patients and saves organs and lives. However, patients need 24/7 access to this service and we need more trained interventional radiologists to deliver emergency access for patients,” he explained.

He added that the Model of Care report “puts a framework in place to train qualified interventional radiologists in order to increase access to this life-saving treatment for clinicians and patients across the country”.

The Model of Care for Interventional Radiology report forms part of the RCSI Faculty of Radiologists’ and the National Clinical Programme of Radiology’s application to the Irish Medical Council for speciality status for interventional radiologists in Ireland.