Medical Imaging Blog

Medical Imaging: Our Future

Challenges of Moving Medical Imaging Into The Cloud

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Medical Imaging In The CloudNetworking and privacy issues are top concerns for managing imaging data in the cloud, which was a topic addressed at the recent RNSA conference. According to Fred Prior, PhD, of Washington University in St. Louis, cloud computing can offer many advantages to medical imaging, but effective project management is crucial to realize any cost savings.

Is the Cloud Implying a False Sense of Security?

Placing the word “cloud” into a computing technology gives the uninitiated a false sense of unlimited space and infallible security. Well, not all networks are created equal. For teaching hospitals affiliated with a university, radiologists are most likely spoiled by the easy access to a high-speed university network. The assumption is that they can push medical images to the “cloud” quickly and with little thought.

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4 Healthcare Technology Trends Supported By Medical Imaging Systems

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Healthcare Technology TrendsMedical imaging systems have continually represented – or helped us to take advantage of – the cutting-edge of healthcare information technology. Here’s a quick look at some of the industry trends these systems will help our field to benefit from through the balance of the year.

1. Mobile Devices. The 2nd Annual HIMSS Mobile Technology Survey published in December 2012 (available for download here) identified an increased use of mobile devices by medical professionals. Meanwhile, a Manhattan Research survey found that 62 percent of physicians used mobile devices in their daily practice last year, double the use from 2011. While 2010 may have been hot for the smartphone, in 2012 use of the media tablet heated up. Expect this trend to grow throughout the year, with goals rooted in more efficient patient care.

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Medical Imaging Critical To Improving Emergency Care: Q&A With Dr. Sandra Schneider Part 3

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Dr. Sandra SchneiderEarlier this week, emergency medicine specialist Dr. Sandra Schneider identified emergency department overcrowding as a symptom of hospital overcrowding in part one of my interview with her.  In part two yesterday, we identified better collaboration between medical imaging and emergency care leaders as critical towards managing overcrowding.

In the final part of my interview below, we put our focus squarely on the patient, as we learn how all of medicine must work together to improve the cost efficiency of care, without sacrificing improvements to patient outcomes.

How do you see the new focus on improving patient outcomes impacting emergency medical care and/or reimbursements?

Continue Reading: Medical Imaging Critical To Improving Emergency Care: Q&A With Dr. Sandra Schneider Part 3

Medical Imaging Critical To Improving Emergency Care: Q&A With Dr. Sandra Schneider Part 2

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Dr. Sandra SchneiderIn part one of my interview with Dr. Sandra Schneider, we identified emergency department overcrowding as a symptom – rather than cause of – overall hospital overcrowding, while dispelling some long held myths regarding the true economic impact of this issue.

While yesterday’s interview provided more context, the fact remains that emergency department overcrowding is an issue all the same.  And with the roll-out of health care reform, many expect it to continue to grow in severity.

Continue Reading: Medical Imaging Critical To Improving Emergency Care: Q&A With Dr. Sandra Schneider Part 2

Medical Imaging Critical To Improving Emergency Care: Q&A With Dr. Sandra Schneider Part 1

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Dr. Sandra SchneiderOver the last several years, emergency department overcrowding has become a troubling issue, one that can become an easy scapegoat for the massive health care cost overruns we have become accustomed to hearing about.

But is emergency department overcrowding a cause – or a symptom – of something larger?  And whether emergency department overcrowding is a cause or a symptom, how can healthcare organizations use new technology, including medical imaging, as a cure?

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It’s Time For Radiology To Adopt Business Intelligence Analytics

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Radiology AnalyticsOne of radiology’s biggest thinkers, University of Chicago School of Medicine vice-chair of radiology informatics, Paul Chang, MD, wants radiologists to step up their game. Meaningful use requirements dictate the adoption of business intelligence analytics (BIA) for radiology. And you can’t improve what you don’t measure.

Measuring Efficiency Using Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

According to Chang, radiology lags way behind other business models in the use of BIA, which includes dashboards, scorecards and other key performance indicators (KPIs). A KPI helps measure if you’re improving your processes, efficiencies and adding value to the product or service you provide.

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New Medical Imaging Technology Developed To Overcome Multi-Facility Challenges

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Medical Image of Hand“A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that worked.”|
John Gall, The Systems Bible

Gall’s quote above can be very readily applied to meeting the needs of multi-facility hospitals and health care organizations, particularly, the needs of the medical imaging department. Some of the more common challenges with managing medical imaging across multiple facilities include:

  • Radiologist travel needs
  • Slow report turnaround times
  • Disparate systems containing incomplete patient information

And it was this last challenge in particular, coupled with over 1,100 medical imaging system installations, that helped to drive the development of the newest enterprise medical imaging solutions from McKesson.

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4 Ways Radiologists Can Prepare For Value-Based Reimbursement

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Value-Based GrowthThere’s no shortage of commentary on what the consequences of changing from a fee-for-service model to value-based reimbursement might have on healthcare delivery and profits, but an article by two authors, cited by Health Imaging, caught our attention with a provocative premise: develop a reimbursement metric that focuses on physician time savings.

Christoph I. Lee, MD, of the Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and Dieter R. Enzmann, MD, of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, suggest that radiologists will benefit in this new era if they focus on the time value of money rather than radiology information systems imaging technology.  You can read the abstract of their article here.

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Experience With Medical Imaging Helps Lead to Reduction in Costs

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Medical Imaging Costs

 

 

We forget sometimes that technology solutions, like medical imaging systems, were considered to be groundbreaking diagnostic tools when they first appeared in hospital settings. Today, medical scans are commonplace for quality health care delivery.

Like anyone with a bit of shiny new technology in their hands, the early adopters (radiologists) were enthusiastic proponents of the benefits to others (referring physicians). And, for the most part, the referrers generally responded as expected, but using imaging with a higher frequency when seeking a diagnosis for a wide variety of conditions.

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How Enterprise Imaging Can Support Patient Throughput Goals

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Emergency MedicineSoon, healthcare organizations in the U.S. will be reimbursed on pay-for-performance model based on 17 core measures as well as consumer survey reports. While reimbursements only measure scores from inpatients, emergency department (ED) operations will have a huge impact.

As the “front door” of most facilities, the ED has a tremendous opportunity to influence both a patient’s perception of care and clinical quality.

Creating a “Patient Flow Standard”

The Joint Commission (TJC) established the “patient flow standard” which addresses how leadership uses data and measurements to identify, mitigate and manage issues affecting patient flow through the hospital. (Source: The National Law Review)

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