Clinical operation policy for ALL CT imaging requests from the Emergency Department Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow

Warning

Process for CT imaging requests:

Any patient presenting to the Paediatric Emergency Department of the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow (RHCG) who are felt to require CT imaging should have the request authorised by the Consultant in Paediatric Emergency Medicine on duty prior to discussion with the duty Radiology Consultant / Senior registrar.

Process for CT imaging request for possible Neurosurgical shunt dysfunction:

Any patient presenting to the Paediatric Emergency Department of the Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow (RHCG) who are felt to require CT imaging to assess for possible neurosurgical shunt dysfunction should have the request authorised by the Consultant in Paediatric Emergency Medicine on duty prior to discussion with the 1st on call for Neurosurgery.

  • If the Neurosurgeon accepts responsibility to interpret the imaging then the ED team will contact the on-call CT radiographer directly to arrange the scan.
  • If the Neurosurgeon DOES NOT accept responsibility to interpret the imaging then the ED team will discuss the case with the duty Radiology Consultant / Senior registrar PRIOR to contacting the on-call CT radiographer. The imaging should then be reported by the duty Radiology Consultant / Senior registrar – in line with current processes for other CT imaging requests.

Editorial Information

Last reviewed: 01/03/2021

Next review date: 31/10/2025

Author(s): Dr Steve Foster (Consultant in Paediatric Emergency Medicine).

Approved By: Paediatric Emergency Department