Across the globe, access to IR procedures varies greatly. Current data shows that more than half of the world does not have access to radiology resources. Over 1 billion people have limited to no access to IR in sub-Saharan Africa alone, and in places like Asia and Latin America, IR is critically insufficient when compared to that in the United States.
There is a clear need to fill these IR deserts, as IR has the potential to create massive improvements in global health. But data on global IR training and practice is scarce.
“The limited data we have shows that access to IR services is limited in many countries. In most countries, data simply does not exist, leaving no clear map of the current states of IR education and practice in these places,” said Justin Guan, MD, chair of SIR’s Global Trainee Network, under the International Division. “We need to know what the challenges are, whether it’s insufficient IR training, insufficient access to radiologic equipment, or other factors.”
Without these key pieces of information, we do not know where and how to focus efforts to make IR available to more people in the world.
To fill that void, SIR is conducting the Global IR Survey with the aims of understanding where IR training is needed and identifying the most relevant challenges of IR practice. Understanding these points is a crucial part of expanding IR’s global footprint and allowing all patients to access life-saving IR interventions.
The Global IR Survey will document the current status of IR and help SIR expand its impact globally by determining what kind of support SIR may be able to offer. The results will provide important data for funding applications, as well as a roadmap for industry investment and government support. Once finalized, the results will be drafted into a report and submitted to the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology.
“Survey participants will be asked about their experiences, training, what kind of IR procedures they perform, as well as factors that may be preventing the expansion of IR in their areas,” Dr. Guan said.
The survey takes only about five minutes to complete, and all responses will remain confidential. Help SIR expand global access to IR by completing the survey here.
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