Pregnacy
Patients and partners using mobile phones or video cameras to record ultrasound examinations during pregnancy can distract health professionals and may cause them to miss vital observations.
Sonographers who carry out ultrasound examinations during the course of a pregnancy are increasingly being asked by people accompanying the patient if they can make a recording of the scan.
New guidance from the Society and College of Radiographers (SCoR), which represents sonographers, says that whilst the decision as to whether recording should be permitted is a matter of policy for individual hospitals, their recommendation is that it should not be allowed.
"The concern is that recording can affect the concentration of the sonographer doing the examination and he or she may be distracted and miss vital observations," said Nigel Thomson from the SCoR.
"People taking home videos can also unnecessarily extend the time of the ultrasound examination," he continued. "We would like to see hospitals have a clear policy following a risk assessment taking account of sonographer preferences, local policies and the views of patient liaison groups.
"Departments should also advise staff how to deal with people who film without permission, or carry on when asked to stop."
Tagged in Pregnancy