Inside News

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General Interest
Volume 12 No 2 I March 2016 55
New Zealand
Branch News
Dr Lance Lawler
Is the art of communication the response that is received?
If the answer is yes, then as a medical specialty we have much work ahead
to ensure that radiology and radiation oncology are recognised to the level
that they contribute to the health system. This represents a challenge to both
the College and us as individual clinicians. Simply put, we need to better
communicate our story and what value we add to the health care of each
New Zealander.
Choosing Wisely
I am pleased to be able to say that
a good response was received to
the Choosing Wisely survey that was
circulated by the Branch pre-Christmas.
The responses have laid the foundation
for the adoption of six interventions that
will allow the profession to communicate
with the public and other medical
specialties about radiology. It is my
hope that we will be able to utilise this
tool moving forward. The Branch is also
represented on the Council of Medical
Colleges’ subcommittee and is working
on innovative and creative methods to
disseminate this information.
CT Colonography
As most of you will be aware, CT
Colonography (CTC) has been utilised
in New Zealand for well over a decade
now, and has been validated as an
excellent non-invasive investigation for
bowel cancer in numerous local and
overseas studies. Despite this, it has
struggled to gain wider acceptance in
the surgical and gastroenterological
communities. After years of tireless work
by radiologists on the National Bowel
Cancer Working Group and within other
groups, there has been a major shift this
year with newly released guidelines for
the investigation of suspected bowel
cancer that now include CTC alongside
optical colonoscopy (OC) for many
indications. The same document also
recommends a common triage point
for CTC and OC.
The Branch Committee will work on
disseminating this information over the
next couple of months.
Teleradiology
The Medical Council of New Zealand
is currently reviewing its statement
on telehealth. The revised statement
is intended to apply to doctors
registered in New Zealand and
practising telehealth in New Zealand
and/or overseas, and doctors who
reside overseas and provide health
services through telehealth to patients
in New Zealand. This review may
have consequences for radiology
and the wider issues we face around
teleradiology. The Branch will be actively
involved and make a submission to
Council.
Save the Date
Lastly, to help provide an opportunity for
Branch members to catch up with each
other, a function is being planned for
22 September 2016 in Auckland. The
idea at present is to start at 6pm and
have a tour of the Auckland Art Gallery,
along with some refreshments. Please
consider placing this event in your diary.
As always, I am happy to talk to anybody
about Branch matters, or issues that they
might have.
Please feel free to contact me at