The Pattern of Referrals to the Imaging Department of the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital, Eldoret

Advanced imaging modalities are not available in most health facilities in Kenya thus prompting a need for referral to other facilities that provide such services.Studying the pattern of radiology referrals is crucial for improving the service delivery, as well as providing valuable data for decision making. This cross-sectional audit was designed to establish the load of radiological examination referrals to the imaging department of Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), Eldoret  over a three month period, with a major objective of documenting data for specific medical imaging referrals to the facility and hence radiology service utility. The target population comprised patients that presented with request forms from other facilities for radiology services apart from the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital. Data collected focussed on the type of examination, the age of the referred subjects, the gender and the region from whence the referrals originated. From a total, 1499 cases comprising both referred and the non-referred subjects during the study period, 127 cases constituted referrals, of which 70 were female cases (55%) and 57 male cases (45%). Of these, the majority of those referred were aged between 21 to 40 years (41%). Geriatrics over 71 years constituted 6.3% of the cases. CT presented the highest referral rate with 50 cases forming 39.4% of the total referrals. Ultrasound referrals accounted for 33.07%. Female cases outweighed the males with a 55% stake of the referrals. Kitale, Kapsabet, and Plateau were the regions with the largest referral rates for CT, Ultrasound, and projection radiography respectively. The study revealed a low referral rate and recommends for investment in imaging equipment and a restructuring of medical insurance to cater for investigations as the some of the referrals had difficulty in paying for the services.