Proceduralist is the broad term for a
physician
A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
, usually a specialist or
subspecialist who performs different diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.
Depending on the type of procedure, this is commonly referring to a:
*
Surgeon (for surgical procedures)
*
Interventional radiologist
Interventional radiology (IR) is a medical specialty that performs various minimally-invasive procedures using medical imaging guidance, such as x-ray fluoroscopy, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, or ultrasound. IR performs bo ...
(for radiologically guided procedures)
* Gastroenterologist (for
endoscopic
An endoscopy is a procedure used in medicine to look inside the body. The endoscopy procedure uses an endoscope to examine the interior of a hollow organ or cavity of the body. Unlike many other medical imaging techniques, endoscopes are insert ...
investigations / therapies)
* Respiratory physician (for
bronchoscopy
Bronchoscopy is an endoscopic technique of visualizing the inside of the airways for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. An instrument (bronchoscope) is inserted into the airways, usually through the nose or mouth, or occasionally through a trac ...
)
* Cardiologist (for
coronary angiography)
It may also be used to refer to any other provider of a procedure, even when it may not be their primary role (e.g. an
intensivist
An intensivist is a medical practitioner who specializes in the care of critically ill patients, most often in the intensive care unit
220px, Intensive care unit
An intensive care unit (ICU), also known as an intensive therapy unit or intensi ...
inserting a
central venous line, or a
psychiatrist performing
electroconvulsive therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a psychiatric treatment where a generalized seizure (without muscular convulsions) is electrically induced to manage refractory mental disorders.Rudorfer, MV, Henry, ME, Sackeim, HA (2003)"Electroconvulsive th ...
.
Proceduralists, regardless of their specific specialty, are commonly responsible for obtaining informed consent from the patient for the intervention they will receive, performing the procedure, and often care following completion of the intervention. Most procedures are facilitated by
sedation or
anaesthesia
Anesthesia is a state of controlled, temporary loss of sensation or awareness that is induced for medical or veterinary purposes. It may include some or all of analgesia (relief from or prevention of pain), paralysis (muscle relaxation), a ...
to ensure a patient remains comfortable and physiologically supported, thus the proceduralist is required to work alongside an
anaesthesiologist or another provider with experience with anaesthesia to ensure the success of the procedure. Additionally, they are often assisted by other medical or nursing staff to perform the procedure.
Clinical procedure safety
The use of the term proceduralist is often used in outlining procedures for ensuring
patient safety
Patient safety is a discipline that emphasizes safety in health care through the prevention, reduction, reporting and analysis of error and other types of unnecessary harm that often lead to adverse patient events. The frequency and magnitude of ...
in any invasive procedure, regardless of the exact type.
The proceduralist would be expected to participate and lead a procedural time out, often guided by a checklist such as the
WHO Surgical Safety Checklist The World Health Organization (WHO) published the WHO Surgical Safety Checklist in 2008 in order to increase the safety of patients undergoing surgery. The checklist serves to remind the surgical team of important items to be performed before an ...
. This includes ensuring the patient identity, the nature and site of the procedure, noting any allergies or any other major procedural risks and ensuring the team is briefed and ready to proceed.
References
Hospital medicine
Medical procedures
Health care occupations
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