Abstract
990
Objectives: There are many institutions where the PET-CT center is located as an out-patient facility. Inpatients must be transported to the outpatient center to undergo the examination. There are a variety of guidelines which must be followed for the safe evaluation and transport from the hospital to the outpatient PET-CT facility. Several of the considerations we will discuss includes:-Assessment of patient stability and condition to come for PET-CT-Communication with nuclear medicine physician to approve exam- Determination of any special needs of the patient and if patient needs to be accompanied by other medical personnel.-Protocols to order transport of inpatient to imaging center-Handling the patientt during the PET-CT study, including communication with nurses-Safe transport of patient back to hospitalWe will discuss how each institution needs to establish specific guidelines for performance of these studies.
Methods: We will discuss various guidelines and methods for the arrangement and performance of PET-CT studies as inpatients in an outpatient facility.We will illustrate methods of performing PET-CT in the outpatient setting and discuss the importance of communication with the primary care physician for diagnosis and patient condition.We will discuss patient transport issues and development of protocols for safe transport and performance of the examination.
Results: n/a
Conclusion: There are many institutions where PET-CT remains an outpatient procedure. If there is a patient in the hospital setting that requires a PET-CT study, arrangement must be made to perform this examination. Each institution must establish their own specific guidelines for inpatients from the time the study is ordered, allowing for safe patient transportation, performance of the PET-CT, and the safe return of the patient to the hospital. We discuss the different factors and challenges that can confront any organization performing these examinations. We discuss the importance of the communication process during the entire procedure. We expand on the various issues that can confront the nuclear medicine team including patient condition, isolation precautions, medications, scheduling, intravenous contrast, patient identification, and transportation issues. Research Support: n/a