July 2021 civil unrest: South African diagnostic radiography students' experiences.

Background: South Africa (SA), in 2021, experienced a wave of civil unrest following political events that led to mass looting and the destruction of property. Civil unrests, among other disruptions, have been seen to cause ripple effects on healthcare education, particularly for radiography students who undergo work integrated learning within hospitals and universities, even during these times of unrest. Aim: This study aimed to explore and describe the undergraduate diagnostic radiography students' experience of the civil unrest that occurred in SA in 2021. Setting: The study was conducted across five universities in South Africa, offering the diagnostic radiography programme. Methods: A qualitative, interpretive phenomenological design was employed as it enabled the researchers to facilitate focus group interviews to gain insight into the lived experiences of the students during this time. Results: Four themes emerged from the study data, namely: (1) Negative effects on students' emotional and psychological well-being, (2) Academic and clinical support mechanisms during disruptions, (3) The influence of disruptions on clinical training, (4) Recommendations to support students for future disruptions. Conclusion: The participants from this study described the negative effects that the civil unrest had on their emotional and mental well-being. There is a need for increased support mechanisms during times of disruptions from universities across South Africa. Contribution: The findings highlight the ripple effects that disruptions, such as civil unrests, have on radiography students. This can assist universities to relook at their institutional support structures, in order to enhance the current support given to students across universities in times of disruptions.

The experiences of teleradiology end users regarding role extension in a rural district of the North West province: A qualitative analysis.

BACKGROUND: Teleradiology was implemented across South Africa, to provide reporting services to rural healthcare institutes without a radiologist. This is guided by standard operating procedure manuals (SOP) which standardise the quality of services provided. From observation, end users, namely, the radiographer and referring clinician, experience challenges in fulfilling the roles extending beyond the SOP. AIM: To explore the end users' experiences within this context and the impact it has on service delivery. SETTING: A rural district in North West province, South Africa. METHOD: This was a qualitative, exploratory, descriptive study. Focus group discussions were held with radiographers and referring clinicians from the teleradiology site in the North West province. A one-on-one interview was conducted with a private radiologist at the reporting site in Gauteng. An interview guide was used to ask open-ended questions to address the aim of the study. RESULTS: At the teleradiology site, radiographers and referring clinicians are performing extended roles, not described in the teleradiology service-level agreement (SLA) and felt poorly equipped to fulfil these roles. They also felt that the private radiologists needed training on interprofessional collaboration to understand the challenges facing health professionals at these rural sites. CONCLUSION: SLA's should align with the clinical needs and practices of the district. This should guide the specific training needs of the end users practicing in rural areas, to support their extended roles in the teleradiology setting. Training should be in-house, ongoing and consistent to cater for the influx of health professionals entering the rural setting using teleradiology systems.

The experiences of teleradiology end users regarding role extension in a rural district of the North West province: a qualitative analysis

Background: Teleradiology was implemented across South Africa, to provide reporting services to rural healthcare institutes without a radiologist. This is guided by standard operating procedure manuals (SOP) which standardise the quality of services provided. From observation, end users, namely, the radiographer and referring clinician, experience challenges in fulfilling the roles extending beyond the SOP. Aim: To explore the end users' experiences within this context and the impact it has on service delivery. Setting: A rural district in North West province, South Africa. Method: This was a qualitative, exploratory, descriptive study. Focus group discussions were held with radiographers and referring clinicians from the teleradiology site in the North West province. A one-on-one interview was conducted with a private radiologist at the reporting site in Gauteng. An interview guide was used to ask open-ended questions to address the aim of the study. Results: At the teleradiology site, radiographers and referring clinicians are performing extended roles, not described in the teleradiology service-level agreement (SLA) and felt poorly equipped to fulfil these roles. They also felt that the private radiologists needed training on interprofessional collaboration to understand the challenges facing health professionals at these rural sites. Conclusion: SLA's should align with the clinical needs and practices of the district. This should guide the specific training needs of the end users practicing in rural areas, to support their extended roles in the teleradiology setting. Training should be in-house, ongoing and consistent to cater for the influx of health professionals entering the rural setting using teleradiology systems