A Delphi study on research priorities in radiation therapy: The Norwegian perspective

Medical magnetic resonance imaging publications in Arab countries: A 25-year bibliometric analysis

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is increasingly becoming a cornerstone in modern diagnostic healthcare, offering unparalleled capabilities in stroke, dementia, and cancer screening. Therefore, this study aims to map medical MRI literature affiliated with Arab countries, focusing on publication trends, top journals, author affiliations, study countries, and authors' collaboration, and keyword analysis. The scientific database used is the Scopus database. Microsoft Excel, VOSviewer software, and Biblioshiny for the Bibliometrix R package are the bibliometric tools used in this analysis. A total of 2592 publications were published between 1988 and 2022, with total citations of 22,115. Most of them were original articles (91,7%) and 89.9% were published in traditional journals. The number of total publications exhibited a steady increase over time, whereas total citations showed fluctuations, peaking in 2015 with 1571 citations for publications from that year. The most cited article was authored by Yaseen M. Arabi, receiving 286 citations. Saudi Arabia was the top active country. In addition, the most prolific author was Maha S Zaki, and the most prolific source was the "Egyptian Journal of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine". The most prolific affiliation was Cairo University. The "multiple sclerosis" and "case report" were the most trending keywords. The analysis revealed a significant growth in MRI research inside Arab countries, as shown by an increase in the total number of publications and international collaborations. Despite these developments, the results of this study suggest that there is still room for MRI research in the Arab region to advance. This can be achieved through increasing international collaboration and multidisciplinary work.

Identification of research priorities of radiography science: A modified Delphi study in Europe

Radiography science is a new discipline among health sciences. It is a discipline that investigates phenomena in medical imaging, radiation therapy, and nuclear medicine. It has merged from the need to provide research evidence to support these services. The domain of the discipline needs clarification and more research should be focused on its paradigmatic issues. Radiography research priorities have been previously charted on a national level in different countries but the viewpoint has been that of the needs of the profession, not of the discipline. This study aimed to identify the priorities of the discipline. The method chosen was a modified version of the Delphi technique with two rounds. The expert panel consisted of 24 European radiography researchers with long professional experience. This study shows that the research priorities in radiography science are related to the phenomena of radiographers' profession, clinical practices, and the safe and high-quality use of radiation and technology for medical imaging, radiotherapy, and nuclear medicine. Identifying these priorities can help focus research onto most important topics and clarify disciplinary perspective.

Phenomena of radiography science - A scoping review

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of the study is to clarify the domain of radiography science. The main goal of science is building knowledge and developing ideas and theories that explain, predict, understand or interpret the phenomena investigated. Each discipline has its own perspective to view and study the phenomena of interest. The disciplinary perspective enables researchers in radiography science to reason and conceptualize phenomena, but it can also restrict them. The aim of this review was to investigate phenomena that are at the core of the discipline of radiography science.

METHODS

This study used a scoping review as the method. A systematic search was carried out in the databases: Science Direct, Pubmed, Cinahl, and Scopus. The selection of articles was conducted by predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria for the title, abstract and full text. After the exclusion process, fourteen articles were selected for a final review. The articles were analyzed with inductive content analysis.

RESULTS

From the articles, 117 research interests were identified; these were merged into 17 categories and further into six main categories. The main categories represent the phenomena radiography science investigates. The phenomena are: the radiographers' profession, clinical practices in diagnostic and therapeutic patient pathways, safe and high quality use of radiation, radiographic technology, discipline, management and leadership of radiography professionals CONCLUSIONS: Radiography science has a conceptual structure of its own that needs more investigation. Radiography science researches distinctive phenomena and specialized knowledge, common to researchers from different traditions and subspecialties thus justifying its existence.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Investigating the core phenomena of interest in radiography science can support researchers in the field to focus their research and to develop the concepts of radiography.

Patient perspectives on frame versus mask immobilization for gamma knife stereotactic radiosurgery

PURPOSE

To assess patient experiences and perspectives following Gamma Knife (GK) stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) using frame versus mask immobilization.

METHODS

Patients who received GK-SRS using both frame and mask immobilization were included in this study. One-on-one semi-structured interviews, led by a third-party expert, were used to gain insight into the patient experience. To reduce memory bias of either immobilization device, patients underwent the interview at their follow-up appointment. Initial assessment of patient transcriptions was completed by one study staff; a second member reviewed transcripts for thematic saturation. All interviews were independently coded for themes to minimize interpretation bias.

RESULTS

Fifteen patients were consented; 12 were successfully interviewed (3 lost due to deteriorating health status). Interviews ranged from 30 to 60 min in duration. The most common patient concern regarding the frame was pain (9 patients), while the primary concerns with the mask system were the ability to remain still (6 patients) and claustrophobia (4 patients). Eleven patients chose the mask as their preferred choice in terms of their overall experience. Two themes emerged during the interviews that spoke to patient satisfaction with each process: unexpected pain with frame placement; and tightness experienced while wearing the mask during treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

From the patient perspective there was overwhelming agreement that the mask was the preferred choice for GK-SRS. The patient experience could be improved by enhanced education to better prepare patients on what to expect during the frame placement and mask treatment processes.

Radiation therapists' perspectives on participating in research

INTRODUCTION

The objectives of this research were to: (1) determine the extent of Australian radiation therapists (RTs) research participation; (2) evaluate the impact of research involvement on career perceptions (3) explore which research topics require investigation and (4) identify benefits and barriers to research participation.

METHODS

This study used mixed methods to collect qualitative and quantitative data using an online survey from a larger workforce study of RTs and radiation oncology medical physicists. Participants practising in Australia completed questions about their research involvement. Chi-square tests and logistic regression were used to analyse quantitative data and content analysis was used to explore qualitative data.

RESULTS

Two hundred and ninety-six RTs answered the research questions. Forty-six percent had been involved in research. Of these, 91% had been involved in departmental, 28% in national, 14% in international and 29% in informal or self-directed research studies. Eleven RTs (8%) had received funding as a chief/principal investigator. Involvement in research was associated with a desire to make a career change. However, it also appeared to be associated with greater satisfaction with career progression and staying in the career. Respondents identified a range of potential research topics, benefits of participating in research and barriers which included lack of time, support and cost.

CONCLUSION

Almost half of the RT participants identified that they were participating in research. Our data suggest that continued involvement in research, and opportunities to participate, improve RT job satisfaction. RTs' research activities are likely to be extended through provision of additional time and support.