The 2nd prize winner of the 2005 Audit Poster Prize
	Dr D Burling, The Great Western Hospital, Swindon
	Poster Abstract Details - Title
	NHS Colorectal Cancer Plan Targets: One Radiological Solution
	Abstract:
	The NHS cancer plan ‘waiting time' target of one month between diagnosis and treatment is formidable when radiological staging is necessary to establish the optimal treatment strategy. This audit aimed to minimize the interval between colorectal cancer diagnosis and staging CT to ensure an achievable target. In our hospital, patients with symptoms of colorectal cancer generally undergo barium enema examination followed by a staging CT scan, if a cancer is found. Usual practice was for the clinician to see the patient at a second visit to discuss the barium results and request the CT as appropriate. We found this strategy created excessive imaging delays and aimed to streamline the process by the reporting radiologist making the CT referral directly. As a result, average intervals between barium enema and CT fell from 42 days (range 13 to 101, median = 15 days) to 16 days (range 5 to 40, median = 35 days) for the six months before and after implementing the new referral process. In conclusion, local implementation of a novel CT referral process, tackling unnecessary imaging delays, means NHS cancer plan targets are now feasible.