Persian-speaking Radiologists

Radiology is the one specialty almost nobody picks for themselves. You arrive holding a referral, because another doctor has a question that only an image can answer. The radiologist does not treat you either: they take the images, read them, and send a report back to the doctor who sent you. Which means nearly everything a patient needs to know here is procedural rather than medical: the referral, the preparation, the length of the appointment, and who your result actually goes to.

In an emergency, or if there is a risk to life, call 112. Outside surgery hours the medical on-call service answers on 116 117, and it can also help you find an appointment. This page is only a directory and is not an emergency service.

What the Verified badge does and does not say

Verified says one thing only: a real person stands behind this profile and manages it themselves. YabInfy does not check anyone's certificates, licences, experience or competence, and the badge is not for sale.

The referral, and who gets the answer

Most imaging practices will not book you without a referral, and that is not bureaucracy: until somebody writes down what they are looking for, nobody knows which region to image on which machine. Before you leave your doctor's room, look at the slip. It should name the region, the clinical question (what they suspect) and the type of imaging, and if contrast is wanted it should say so. A slip with one word on it usually ends in an extra phone call and a week of delay.

The second thing nobody tells you in advance is that you often will not hear the answer at the appointment. The report (Befund) is written for the referring doctor, and that doctor is the one who goes through it with you. So ask on the day when it will be sent, and book time with your own doctor to discuss it.

Radiology has no sub-categories in this listing, so the results are not split by machine, and no single practice has every machine. When you call, ask outright whether they do the exact examination your referral names.

The machines, and what each appointment is actually like

• Plain x-ray (Röntgen): the shortest appointment. You undress the area, hold still for a few seconds, done.
• Ultrasound (Ultraschall): no radiation, just gel and a probe on the skin. For the abdomen they may want you fasting or with a full bladder, so ask when you book about preparation.
• CT: you lie on a table that moves through a ring. The imaging itself takes minutes, and in some cases contrast is injected into a vein.
• MRI (MRT): no x-rays, but the longest and loudest appointment. You lie inside a tube and, depending on what is being scanned, keep still from about a quarter of an hour to closer to an hour.
• Mammography (Mammographie): short, but the breast is compressed between two plates and those seconds are uncomfortable. Separately from any referral, there is a screening programme that invites people by post.

Why MRI appointments run long, and what shortens the wait

The bottleneck is the machine: one patient occupies it for a long stretch and there are only so many scanners, which is why the MRI queue is longer everywhere than the x-ray queue. Three things genuinely shorten it:

• Ask whether they keep a cancellation list, and say you can come at short notice. Slots close to today open up because somebody else dropped out.
• Say which scan and which region the referral is for. Knowing that, reception can slot you into a shorter gap that happens to fit.
• Be flexible about the time of day. First thing in the morning and late afternoon fill up last.

What to tell them when you book

None of this is medical advice. It is information that changes what the practice can do, and saying it early is what stops an appointment being cancelled once you are standing there.

• Metal and implants: plates and screws, an artificial joint, surgical clips, a stent, dental implants, or any metal left in you.
• An implanted electronic device: a pacemaker (Herzschrittmacher), defibrillator, hearing implant, insulin pump, nerve stimulator. Bring the device card if you have one.
• Pregnancy, or the possibility of it: say so before any imaging. The decision about what happens is theirs, but they can only make it if they know.
• Claustrophobia: mention it, because an MRI happens inside a tube. Sometimes a wider scanner or another route is available.
• Weight and size: every machine has its own weight limit and bore diameter. If that might be an issue, ask at the start, so they can point you to a scanner that works for you.
• Kidney problems and diabetes medication: if contrast is planned, tell them whether you have kidney trouble and what you take for diabetes. They may want a recent blood test.
• A previous reaction to a contrast agent: if you have ever reacted to contrast (Kontrastmittel), any reaction at all, say so when you book and again on the day. Mention other drug allergies too.

On the day: noise, holding still, bringing someone

Holding still is the main thing asked of you, because a blurred image means the scan gets repeated. An MRI is loud, they give you ear protection, and you hold a buzzer you can press at any moment. If you know you cannot cope with enclosed spaces, ask in advance whether a sedative is possible, and if you are given one, whether you can drive afterwards or need someone to take you home. Ask too whether somebody can come into the room with you: the metal rules in an MRI room apply to them as well. Avoid clothes with zips and metal buttons.

Take your results with you

Before you leave, ask for the images on a disc and a copy of the report for yourself. Most practices hand them over if you ask, and some give online access instead. Do it: every doctor you see next, hospitals included, wants the actual images rather than a summary, and a large share of repeat scans happen only because the earlier ones were not to hand.

Scans you pay for yourself

Whole-body check-up scans and preventive imaging packages are marketed here, and you pay out of your own pocket. Before you pay, ask one question: if something is found, what would that finding change, and what is the next step after it. Ask for the price in writing too. Whether your insurer covers any of it is your insurer's decision.

What to ask when you call

• Whether they want the referral in advance, or the day of the appointment is fine.
• Whether they take your kind of insurance.
• Whether they have the machine you need, and whether they inject contrast on site.
• When the report goes to your doctor, and whether you get the images on a disc.
• Whether somebody there speaks Persian, and whether they are in on the day.
• YabInfy checks none of this, so ask for it yourself, and ask to see the document where it matters.

Choosing from this list

What a patient can genuinely judge about an imaging practice is short and specific: how long it took to get a slot, whether they ran to time, whether anyone explained what was about to happen, and whether the report and the images arrived when they said they would. Read reviews at that level only: none of them tells you whether an image was read correctly. Verified is still rare in this field, so its absence says nothing about a practice. The contact route on each profile sits behind "Show contact details" and rings the imaging centre directly.

On privacy: YabInfy does not show who looked at this page or who got in touch, and none of that is passed to the practice either. The one thing that does become public is any review you write, published under whatever name you pick.

One point about location: imaging happens once, and afterwards it is the report that travels, not you. An earlier slot is often worth a longer trip, particularly for an MRI. The list of cities is at the bottom of this page.

If you do not have a referral yet, start with a General practitioner, and see Doctors and dentists for every field. There is more about how this site works in the FAQ, and if you run an imaging practice, add your business.