Implementing a "One Stop" Consultant Led Ultrasound and Fine Needle Aspiration Service for Thyroid Lumps

The British Thyroid Association has recently aimed to clarify the management of thyroid lumps. They released guidelines, in 2014, recommending Ultrasound (US) examination in all thyroid lesions and Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology (FNAC) if positive findings are localised. Grading systems for both US and FNA were introduced allowing the clinician to compare these results with clinical findings and determine the most appropriate next step. The current target is 62 days for potential malignant disease from urgent referral to the first definitive treatment. We implemented a “One-Stop” Consultant led US and FNAC service for patients presenting with thyroid lesions to streamline our service and ensure this target is reached. Following this introduction we significantly increased the quality of USS grading and the number of successful FNAC investigations.