It is true that there is a nationwide (and global) shortage of Radiologists, however some managers have realised that it is possible to secure a bigger piece of the “manpower cake” by becoming a preferred employer, rather than the highest payer.

Due to both scarcity and changes in attitude towards full time employment, Radiologists are increasingly seeing themselves as a 10 session per week resource and are exercising the opportunity to choose when they work and what type of work they like to do. This may involve a mix of private and public work, the pursuit of a sub speciality interest, teaching, a day off or a combination of the above.

Interesting work and the opportunity to teach are often proffered as reasons why radiologists are attracted to the public hospital system. The reality can be quite different with radiologists struggling to meet reporting demands, registrars feeling as though they are ‘workhorses’ or that their teaching needs are being neglected and onerous on-call commitments all adding to the feeling that the job is not all it’s cracked up to be.

Hospitals which are achieving the status of preferred employer are overcoming this with a stable, effective and high quality manpower base.

It is important to remember that Radiologists are first and foremost highly trained professionals who will seek out employers with high standards, values and work practices. The successful “employers of choice” have realised this and are continually reviewing their model to evolve their adoption of the drivers of radiologist job satisfaction.

One of the ways the “preferred employers” have achieved effective manpower and workload management is via the adoption of a balanced use of onsite and offsite reporting. Offsite reporting when deployed with appropriate QA processes and technology support can be used effectively for after hours and weekend reporting, stack or backlog reporting or as a “safety valve” for absences such as annual leave, sickness or conferences.

This balanced approach to workload management ensures on staff Radiologists and registrars have a manageable workload, alleviates the need for on call or after hours work freeing them up to dedicate time to teaching, research and consultation.