Single Center Experience of the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Education and Career Outlook of Radiologists
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5195/ijms.2023.2428Keywords:
COVID 19, radiology, COVID, Pandemic, No Visitor Policy, Physical Health, Mental Health, Hospital PoliciesAbstract
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic mandated social distancing and contact isolation. There is limited data on the impact of such changes on the clinical and educational experience of radiologists. This study aims to understand how the pandemic affected the education, careers, and mental well-being of resident and attending radiologists.
Methods: A 17-item questionnaire was distributed to resident and attending radiologists at a single academic center. Responses were collected from October 2020 to January 2021 and a follow-up survey was distributed in December 2021. Outcome measures were analyzed using measures of central tendency in Microsoft Excel.
Results: There were 26 responses, 20 from attending physicians and 6 from residents. Of these, 70% of attendings and 66.7% of residents perceived a negative impact on educational experiences. Among those who completed the depression questionnaire, 85% denied symptoms in themselves or colleagues. In the follow-up survey, all participants reported increased imaging volume, and 57% were working remotely. While 57% saw no impact on mentorship from remote interactions, 29% reported a negative effect. A sense of being overworked was noted by 86%, and 43% reported reduced job satisfaction. Depressive symptoms related to the pandemic were endorsed by 71%.
Discussion: While schedule flexibility was a notable benefit to remote work, a significant negative impact on educational experiences was reported. Career dissatisfaction was also significant in the follow-up questionnaire, likely due to sustained increased volume and remote education. Future studies should explore workload, mental health, and career satisfaction to improve structuring of radiology workflows.
References
Bashshur RL, Krupinski EA, Thrall JH, Bashshur N. The Empirical Foundations of Teleradiology and Related Applications: A Review of the Evidence. Telemed J E Health. 2016;22(11):868-898. doi:10.1089/tmj.2016.0149
Cho J, Lee S, Gu BS, Jung SH, Kim HY. The Impact of COVID-19 on the Use of Radiology Resources in a Tertiary Hospital [published correction appears in J Korean Med Sci. 2021 Aug 02;36(30):e215]. J Korean Med Sci. 2020;35(40):e368. Published 2020 Oct 19. doi:10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e368
Shi J, Giess CS, Martin T, et al. Radiology Workload Changes During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications for Staff Redeployment. Acad Radiol. 2021;28(1):1-7. doi:10.1016/j.acra.2020.09.008
Chong A, Kagetsu NJ, Yen A, Cooke EA. Radiology Residency Preparedness and Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Acad Radiol. 2020;27(6):856-861. doi:10.1016/j.acra.2020.04.001
Robbins JB, England E, Patel MD, et al. COVID-19 Impact on Well-Being and Education in Radiology Residencies: A Survey of the Association of Program Directors in Radiology. Acad Radiol. 2020;27(8):1162-1172. doi:10.1016/j.acra.2020.06.002
Matalon SA, Souza DAT, Gaviola GC, Silverman SG, Mayo-Smith WW, Lee LK. Trainee and Attending Perspectives on Remote Radiology Readouts in the Era of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Acad Radiol. 2020;27(8):1147-1153. doi:10.1016/j.acra.2020.05.019
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Hamail Iqbal, Arianne Foster, Alex Zhang, Manisha Koneru, Hamza Shaikh
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- The Author retains copyright in the Work, where the term “Work” shall include all digital objects that may result in subsequent electronic publication or distribution.
- Upon acceptance of the Work, the author shall grant to the Publisher the right of first publication of the Work.
- The Author shall grant to the Publisher and its agents the nonexclusive perpetual right and license to publish, archive, and make accessible the Work in whole or in part in all forms of media now or hereafter known under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License or its equivalent, which, for the avoidance of doubt, allows others to copy, distribute, and transmit the Work under the following conditions:
- Attribution—other users must attribute the Work in the manner specified by the author as indicated on the journal Web site; with the understanding that the above condition can be waived with permission from the Author and that where the Work or any of its elements is in the public domain under applicable law, that status is in no way affected by the license.
- The Author is able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the nonexclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the Work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), as long as there is provided in the document an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post online a prepublication manuscript (but not the Publisher’s final formatted PDF version of the Work) in institutional repositories or on their Websites prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work. Any such posting made before acceptance and publication of the Work shall be updated upon publication to include a reference to the Publisher-assigned DOI (Digital Object Identifier) and a link to the online abstract for the final published Work in the Journal.
- Upon Publisher’s request, the Author agrees to furnish promptly to Publisher, at the Author’s own expense, written evidence of the permissions, licenses, and consents for use of third-party material included within the Work, except as determined by Publisher to be covered by the principles of Fair Use.
- The Author represents and warrants that:
- the Work is the Author’s original work;
- the Author has not transferred, and will not transfer, exclusive rights in the Work to any third party;
- the Work is not pending review or under consideration by another publisher;
- the Work has not previously been published;
- the Work contains no misrepresentation or infringement of the Work or property of other authors or third parties; and
- the Work contains no libel, invasion of privacy, or other unlawful matter.
- The Author agrees to indemnify and hold Publisher harmless from the Author’s breach of the representations and warranties contained in Paragraph 6 above, as well as any claim or proceeding relating to Publisher’s use and publication of any content contained in the Work, including third-party content.
Enforcement of copyright
The IJMS takes the protection of copyright very seriously.
If the IJMS discovers that you have used its copyright materials in contravention of the license above, the IJMS may bring legal proceedings against you seeking reparation and an injunction to stop you using those materials. You could also be ordered to pay legal costs.
If you become aware of any use of the IJMS' copyright materials that contravenes or may contravene the license above, please report this by email to contact@ijms.org
Infringing material
If you become aware of any material on the website that you believe infringes your or any other person's copyright, please report this by email to contact@ijms.org
