Professional Management of Radiology Department Workflow Efficiency at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital

Radiology department workflow management directly determines patient throughput capacity, diagnostic turnaround time, and staff productivity at Nigerian teaching hospitals where imaging demand consistently exceeds current operational capacity. At Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, the alignment of staffing rosters, equipment scheduling, and patient flow protocols with workflow optimisation principles offers a professional management opportunity requiring systematic evaluation. This study examines radiology department workflow efficiency at LASUTH and develops professional management recommendations. A mixed-methods management audit is conducted, combining time-motion study data collected over four weeks for 600 radiography examinations with structured interviews involving 25 radiology department staff and five departmental managers. Efficiency metrics including examination cycle time, equipment downtime proportions, patient waiting time components, and staff idle time are computed and analysed. Process mapping using lean healthcare methodology identifies bottlenecks and waste categories. Available radiology operations management literature from South West Nigerian teaching hospitals identifies prolonged patient registration queues, equipment downtime without contingency protocols, and manual appointment scheduling as the dominant workflow inefficiency sources. The Lean Healthcare Management Framework and the Royal College of Radiologists radiology efficiency benchmarks provide the professional reference standards. Findings are expected to identify registration, patient preparation, and cross-sectional examination queuing as the primary cycle time bottlenecks. Recommendations address digital appointment scheduling, dedicated radiographer-patient flow coordinator roles, and lean workflow improvement implementation at LASUTH radiology department. Keywords: radiology workflow, efficiency management, LASUTH, lean healthcare, South West Nigeria.