A survey of nurse staffing levels in interventional radiology units throughout the UK

• A significant disparity exists between the level of nursing support provided in-hours and OOH.
• This applies to both the availability of a nurse to scrub and to monitor the patient.
• Having a dedicated 24/7 nursing rota is mandatory to providing a deliverable OOH service.

AimTo supplement previous surveys analysing provision of interventional radiology (IR), in-hours (IH) and out-of-hours (OOH), by specifically surveying the level of nursing support provided.Materials and methodsA web-based questionnaire was distributed to all British Society of Interventional Radiology (BSIR) members. This addressed several aspects of radiology nursing support for IR procedures, both IH and OOH.ResultsSixty percent of respondents indicated that they have a formal OOH service. Of these, all have a dedicated nursing rota, with the vast majority operating with one nurse. IH, 77% of respondents always have a scrubbed nurse assistant, but this reduces to 40% OOH. IH, 4% never have a scrubbed radiology nurse assistant, which rises to 25% OOH. IH, 75% of respondents always have a radiology nurse dedicated to patient monitoring, but this reduces to 20% OOH. IH, 3% never have a radiology nurse dedicated to patient monitoring, which rises to 42% OOH.ConclusionA significant disparity exists in the level of IR nursing support between IH and OOH. The majority of sites provide a single nurse with ad hoc additional support. This is potentially putting patients at increased risk. Radiology nurses are integral to the safe and sustainable provision of IR OOH services and a greater focus is required to ensure adequate and safe staffing levels for 24/7 IR services.