Inappropriate imaging: Why it matters, why it happens, what can be done

Diagnostic imaging (DI) accounts for about 15% of the Medicare budget in Australia, and this figure is increasing. The technologies that drive this increase continue to become more complex. It is difficult enough for imaging specialists, let alone referrers, to keep up-to-date with the appropriate methods of investigation of a particular clinical scenario. In this context, there is a real danger that investigations will become technology driven rather than based on clinical need and patient benefit.