There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.
Abstract
A change is underway, with conventional film-screen mammography being surpassed by
the implementation of digital mammography and the associated soft-copy digital film
reporting. However, there is an allied period of changeover with implementation that
requires careful consideration to ensure optimal performance and efficiency of work
tasks.
To examine the human factors implications, a combination of techniques (expert walkthroughs,
verbal protocol analysis, workstation assessment) was applied to examine existing
working practices during the implementation of digital mammography film reading. Radiologists
and advanced practitioners within a UK NHS Breast Screening Unit participated to enable
a thorough understanding to be gained of strategies adopted when using: routine conventional
roller viewing of analogue (film) cases with analogue priors; routine soft-copy reporting
with full-field digital mammography (FFDM) priors; trial FFDM with analogue priors
viewed on a multiviewer; and trial FFDM with digitised analogue cases viewed digitally.
A variety of changes in working practices were recognised to have occurred with digital
implementation. There was an impact upon performance and efficiency of digital soft-copy
reporting when viewing analogue priors. Subsequent recommendations for workstation
design, working practices and training were produced to assist in improved implementation
of digital processes in mammography.