The ZNA Cadix hospital in Antwerp has announced that it is provisionally replacing all its radiologists as issues have arisen regarding the quality of their work. The initial results of an internal audit have found that “diagnoses were not always complete or accurate enough”. The radiologists will not work at the hospital again until the audit has been completed.
Antwerp hospital suspends radiologists as “diagnoses were not always complete or accurate enough”
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The audit came about after several doctors from inside and outside the hospital questioned the quality of medical imaging examinations at ZNA Cadix. A medical imaging examination involves a scan of (part of) the body. Examples of this are X-rays, CT scans or MRI scans.
Concerned doctors approached the hospital's chief medical officer and a medical audit followed. The initial results of the audit show that the “quality of medical imaging did not always meet strict quality standards. Diagnoses were not always complete or accurate enough”
The hospital has decided to suspend all its radiologists until the audit has been completed. Radiologists from other hospitals will now step in to cover their absence. The ZNA Cadix hospital says that the errors and oversights were not due to the equipment at the radiologists’ disposal. “Their quality is beyond any doubt, this is the newest equipment available on the market”
The Flemish nationalist politician Els van Doesburg who chairs the ZNA hospital group, is keen to stress that “the hospital offers the highest quality of care. When quality is compromised, we intervene. That is why we are acting now”.
Brand-new hospital
ZNA Cadix is a brand-new hospital in the Eilandje area of Antwerp, near Park Spoor Noord. The hospital replaced the Stuivenberg Hospital, which closed its doors after 138 years. ZNA Cadix’s grand opening was in September last year. Then many patients were transferred from the Stuivenberg Hospital to ZNA Cadix.