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Pregnant women and cancer patients ‘at risk’ because of sonographer shortage
Vacancy rates for sonographers in England have doubled since 2019, reaching over 38% in some areas, causing critical delays in pregnancy and cancer ultrasound scans.
- Experts warn that a growing shortage of sonographers causes delays for pregnant women and cancer patients, as ultrasound scans are essential to pregnancy care and cancer diagnosis.
- The SoR census reveals a 24.2% vacancy rate for sonographers across England, rising to 38.2% in some areas, with 34.6% shortfalls in London and 30% in the North West.
- Hospitals struggle to balance antenatal screening with urgent needs; prioritizing routine scans impacts critical fetal growth checks requiring completion within 24 or 36 hours, forcing staff reallocation.
- "Training new sonographers takes quite a while," Katie Thompson, SoR president, said, noting that workforce shortfall makes it hard for The Government to decrease waiting times.
- While The Government prioritizes community diagnostic centers, experts argue that increasing testing capacity remains difficult without a comprehensive NHS workforce plan to support new scanners and patient care.
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What caused delays in ultrasound scans?
Ultrasound delays raise concerns for pregnant patients and cancer care Sonographers warn that delays in scheduling and receiving ultrasound scans are putting pregnant people and cancer patients at risk. The report describes a situation where time sensitive ultrasounds—used for monitoring pregnancy…
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Total News Sources11
Leaning Left4Leaning Right0Center4Last UpdatedBias Distribution50% Left, 50% Center
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources lean Left, 50% of the sources are Center
50% Center
L 50%
C 50%
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