Nuclear Medicine
Wait Time Benchmarks for Nuclear Medicine (Diagnostic Imaging)
| Procedure | Emergency cases* | Urgent cases* | Scheduled cases* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bone scan (whole body) | Immediate to 24 h | Within 7 days | Within 30 days |
| FDG-PET | Immediate to 24 h | Within 7 days | Within 30 days |
| Cardiac nuclear imaging (perfusion; viability; LV function) (SPECT or PET) |
Immediate to 24 h | Within 3 days | Within 14 days |
* Priority or urgency levels are defined as follows:
- Emergency = immediate danger to life, limb or organ
- Urgent = Situation that requires an expedited nuclear medicine diagnostic study to decide on patient management
- Scheduled = Situation involving minimal pain, dysfunction or disability (also called “routine” or “elective”)
Note: Unless specified, time refers to calendar days between decision to treat by specialist and the day treatment is received.
Terms
FDG = fluorodeoxyglucose
PET = positron emission tomography
LV = left ventricular
SPECT = single photon emission computed tomography