Sonographers are an essential part of diagnostic ultrasonography, which has rapidly grown into a powerful and invaluable medical tool.

Using ultrasound, doctors can monitor a variety of health conditions from heart disease to breast abnormalities to several gynecological problems-accurately while limiting invasive procedures. Ultrasound helps doctors make a diagnosis and determine the best and most effective means possible to achieve health. (SDMS)

The demand for sonographers is rising, and as the profession grows faster than average, more sonographers are experiencing the physical and mental demands and work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) that accompany sonography.

It’s important that both sonographers and employers understand the physical toll of the profession and take the necessary steps to alleviate and prevent sonographer pain and encourage safe working environments that reduce the risk and prevalence of WRMSDs.

Why do sonographers experience painful WRMSDS?

Sonographer scanning techniques include repetition of physical risk factors that strain tendons, inflame muscles, and place pressure against nerves. “WRMSDs symptoms include inflammation and swelling, numbness, muscle spasm, burning or tingling, and loss of sensation. Some of these symptoms may cause a loss of muscle strength, making it difficult to hold a transducer. As this is a cumulative disorder, seemingly minor symptoms can progress over time to more serious, even debilitating, symptoms.” (Coffin C)

Some typical activities that can lead to sonographer pain over time include:

• Flexing, extending, and applying pressure to the wrist when using a transducer.
• Making the same muscle movements repeatedly, without adequate rest between exams.
• Sustained contact pressure with the exam table.
• Reaching with the shoulders and bending the waist and neck out of a neutral position to complete scans. 

Awkward postures of the trunk, neck, and upper extremities, as well as excess gripping and downward force applied with the transducer, contribute to sonographers’ symptoms of discomfort and risk for injury. For sonographers, the mechanism of injury to the shoulder is felt to correspond to frequent abduction of the scanning arm combined with static loading of the muscles related to pressure applied with the transducer. (SDMS)

Why is addressing sonographer pain so important?

The physical and mental toll of WRMSDs on sonographers is extensive. Over time it affects their ability to perform not only their professional duties, but also daily living activities.

The study “Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WRMSDs) Among Registered Diagnostic Medical Sonographers and Vascular Technologists” indicated that 90% of clinical sonographers experienced symptoms of WRMSDs.

In addition to physical pain, WRMSDs both contribute to and can be exacerbated by the psychological stress of the profession. “Increasing workload, poor control over schedule, and lack of management support lead to mental burn-out, anxiety, and decreased job satisfaction. Sonographers may scan in pain to meet the department’s demands contributing to the development of WRMSDs.” (AIUM)

The impact of these injuries on so many sonographers can cost employers up to $20 billion yearly in direct costs such as Worker’s Compensation and medical expenses, and up to five times that in indirect costs such as lost revenue, absenteeism, and costs related to hiring and training new employees. (SMDS)

How can employers help prevent WRMSDs?

Employers should closely follow industry standards to prevent WRMSDs, which have been provided by the Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration also recommends implementing a more ergonomic workflow to reduce the severity and cost of WRMSDs.

The process includes these steps:

1. Provide support to management and define clear goals for reducing sonographer pain.
2. Involve sonographers and allow them to voice their concerns and suggestions for reducing exposure to risk factors.
3. Provide early and ongoing training on proper scanning techniques.
4. Evaluate and identify the workplace for potential risk factors.
5. Encourage early reporting of symptoms to help prevent or reduce the progression of symptoms

How can sonographers help prevent WRMSDs?

The Reports in Medical Imaging article “Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Sonographers: A Review of Causes and Types of Injury and Best Practices for Reducing Injury Risk” outlines positioning tips to help sonographers prevent strain.

Positioning tips:

• Ensure you can move the length of the exam table to prevent reaching back.
• Position yourself in front of the most frequently used keys on the ultrasound control panel.
• Use an arm support device while scanning.
• Reduce arm abduction and over-reaching by lowering the exam table and/or raising the chair.
• Have the patient move close to the sonographer and position the ultrasound system’s control panel close to the sonographer.

More specialty-focused best practices are also outlined in the article, available here.

Preventive measures range from simple work posture changes that conform to the department’s existing equipment to upgrading the department with state-of-the-art ultrasound systems, exam tables, and chairs. (Coffin C)  

It’s important to understand the long-term impact of WRMSDs on sonographers and their workplace. By taking steps to prevent and mitigate sonographer pain, sonographers, employers, and equipment and technology providers can help improve workplace morale and reduce pain.

AS Software provides more effective ultrasound reporting and customized support to help create safer working environments and ideal workflows for sonographers, so they can have more time in their day for adequate breaks. To learn more about how we can help reduce sonographer pains, schedule a demo.

The 2023 Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) 42nd Annual Pregnancy Meeting was a great opportunity to exchange ideas, new science, and successes in Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM).  

We enjoyed the opportunity to meet leaders, friends, and partners in MFM and were able to hear what was on everyone’s minds in the world of ultrasound and reporting systems for the upcoming year.  

Here are some of our key takeaways from the top topics that were trending at the event: 

Bringing Practice Insights to Life with Integrated Applications to Further Research and Measure Performance 

How can you uncover key trends in ultrasound and forecast for practice growth?  

A very creative solution was shared with us by a physician who uses the Microsoft Business Intelligence (Microsoft BI) tool in combination with the AS Software SQL Database. Microsoft BI analyzes “historical and current data and presents findings in intuitive visual formats … to transform raw data into easy-to-digest insights for everyone in the organization to use.”  

This application, combined with data flowing from AS Software, creates dashboards with data analytics for the practice across its multiple locations.  

They can use it to visualize patient volume, number of ultrasounds performed, completed reports by physician, and more to evaluate overall performance, and measure and plan for practice growth. Patient demographics, raw ultrasound data, and report findings are also used to capture case trends that inform research and aid in diagnosis. 

Using Cloud Technology to Drive Scalability 

How can you remove internal barriers to problem solving at your practice and alleviate IT burdens? 

When switching from local installations to a cloud-hosted solution, organizations greatly reduce burdens and responsibilities that are placed on internal IT teams. Now they have fewer technical issues, and updates, upgrades and fixes are addressed more rapidly by the technology vendor. 

Cutting out these barriers to prompt problem resolutions has really resonated with users who are finding less headaches and more efficiencies with a cloud-hosted system. 

Staying current with the most optimized reporting technology was an increasing priority for clinicians at this year’s SMFM meeting. And learning how to leverage your technology in new and creative ways is proving beneficial to clinicians and practice administration.  

We’re excited to continue developing features that deliver the most value for our customers and look forward to many more events with friends and peers in the industry!  

Want to discuss industry topics with our team of clinical experts? Schedule a demo.  

Nasrin Benion, MBA, RDMS is the Director of Clinical Ultrasound Solutions and brings over 15 years of hands-on industry expertise to AS Software. 

Get to know Nasrin better through her spotlight interview and connect with her on LinkedIn! 

Effective healthcare revenue cycle management is reliant on accurate, timely data passed through multiple systems.

But due to the complex and fragmented nature of today’s typical healthcare technology ecosystem, that burden often falls onto the clinicians that should be empowered to focus more on patient care, creating a gap between ultrasounds and revenue.   

Why is there such a large gap between ultrasound services and revenue? 

Many hospital systems and imaging departments don’t have the necessary tools for clinicians to meet the level of documentation needed for revenue-building charge capture that closes the gap between ultrasounds and revenue. 

If an ultrasound reporting system doesn’t automatically drop ultrasound Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes to an Electronic Health Record (EHR) without extra, manual steps by the clinicians who are performing and reviewing these additional ultrasound services, that revenue is missed.  

For many health systems, this lack of efficient billing connectivity can lead to substantial lost billings from missed ultrasound charges and insurance claim rejections in less than a year. 

Even in the case of straightforward scheduled ultrasounds, most reporting systems aren’t designed with the necessary integrations that simplify and automate workflows to prevent lost charges and minimize errors, and still require manual inputs in multiple systems. 

How are ultrasound billing inefficiencies affecting clinicians and leading to burnout? 

Without billing-integrated reporting systems that allow for clinical flexibility and automated coding, sonographers can’t accurately capture charges for add-on ultrasound services without falling behind on patient volume, and physicians can’t keep up with the time they need to spend documenting in multiple disparate systems.

The need for easier, less time-consuming clinical documentation processes can be easily shown through today’s continually increasing levels of burnout: 

By securing the right technology that removes the burden of billing from clinicians, healthcare organizations can recover missed ultrasound revenue while alleviating clinician burnout — effectively closing the gap between ultrasounds and revenue.

AS Software’s Ultrasound Reporting & Image Management platform implements a detailed financial transaction (DFT) integration with your existing Electronic Health Records (EHR) to enable seamless billing communication.

To learn how data automation can increase reimbursements and help you to capture more revenue, schedule a demo to evaluate your ultrasound reporting system needs.