Medical Imaging Blog

RIS/PACS

How an Effective Radiology Information System Improves Efficiency

A comprehensive radiology information system (RIS) can make a medical imaging workplace much more efficient.

That’s one of the conclusions of Ramin Khorasani, a radiologist from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, in a recent Journal of the American College of Radiology article.

Khorasani argues that articulating well thought-out imaging protocols can reduce unnecessary follow-up medical imaging by facilitating improvement in initial diagnoses. One key to good protocols, he says, is good IT – and that includes an RIS.

Khorasani makes a few specific recommendations for improving protocols:

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5 Top Radiology Programs in the US

So you like X-rays, MRIs, and radiology information systems. And you’re wondering where you should go for that radiology residency.

We may be able to help.

With a frank admission that the “ranking” process is inherently subjective, we’ve drawn up a list of five medical schools that offer outstanding radiology training. Our selection was based on various rankings from the popular press (like U.S. News) and professional organizations and on numbers such as acceptance rates and publications. We also tried to highlight schools from around the U.S.

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Seven Features Every RIS Must Have

These days, it’s almost impossible to imagine a medical imaging practice without a radiology information system (RIS). Unfortunately, it’s quite easy to imagine practices with a sub-standard RIS. Medical imaging practices should look for these seven features in an RIS before buying or upgrading one:

Pre-Loaded and Customizable Tables. No one in a radiology department has time to create all the tables the department needs, which is why an RIS should come with the most common tables pre-loaded. But it should also allow the department to easily manipulate basic templates to meet its unique needs.

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Stay Knowledgeable With the American Board of Radiology

american board of radiology

If you were to take the top 100 associations and professional medical organizations and ask them their number one goal, the answer would resoundingly be the same: Helping Patients and Improving Care. That mission and goal is the driving force behind all of the top medical associations around the globe and the American Board of Radiology is exactly the same way.

Here is more about that radiology association that is doing a great deal of amazing work to advance the field and directly improve patient care:

The American Board of Radiology

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Radiology Resources for the Latest News & Advancements

The field of medical imaging and radiology is constantly evolving and advancing. In a fast-paced industry like healthcare, one of the best ways to stay up-to-date is to frequently check out available Journals and Radiology resources.

The British Journal of Radiology: The British Journal of Radiology is the official peer-reviewed monthly research journal of the British Institute of Radiology. The journal coversalmost every clinical and technical aspect of diagnostic imaging, radiotherapy and oncology, medical physics and radiobiology. Since it covers such a wide range of disciplines means readers can stay current with developments in their own fields as well as those that are related.

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Medical Imaging System Helps Camden-Clark Memorial Improve Patient Care

In 2002, West Virginia-based Camden-Clark Memorial Hospital realized that it needed to streamline the workflow and efficiency of its radiology department by implementing a Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS).

Before choosing a medical imaging system, the 340-bed hospital used a film-based system, which required hours of time to read before actual reporting. Camden-Clark recognized that crucial time – and money – were being wasted.

Following an evaluation of practices, Camden-Clark chose McKesson’s Horizon Medical Imaging™ as its imaging solution. Once implemented, the hospital immediately suspended all use of film – except in rare cases – and exclusively adopted the new system.

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Medical Imaging Solution Enhances the Patient Experience at Bloomington Hospital

Before implementing a Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) and Radiology Information System (RIS), Bloomington Hospital faced the same challenge as many multi-facility hospitals.

While its facilities shared the same patients, they didn’t share patient information and images.

Bloomington Hospital needed a medical imaging solution that would help it enhance the overall patient experience – from ordering to report distribution.

Specifically, the Indiana hospital was in search of a medical imaging solution to eliminate:

Slow report turnaround times and delayed patient treatments
The need for radiologists to travel long distances to other facilities to interpret exams

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Don’t Miss These Radiology Resources for the Latest News & Advancements

Staying up-to-date on the latest medical imaging and radiology research, news and technologies is simple with these two radiology resources. For even more publications and journals, check out our full list of PACS, RIS and healthcare resources.

Applied Radiology: This print and online radiology resource covers all aspects of diagnostic radiology, interventional techniques and therapeutic specialties. Applied Radiology features physician-authored clinical articles and radiological cases, as well as interactive quizzes, reader polls, videos and news stories.

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Stay on Top of the Latest Technologies With These Medical Imaging Associations

No matter what your job function – physician, radiologist, administrator or other personnel – a healthcare IT or medical imaging association exists to help you stay on top of emerging trends and the latest technologies.

Check out the two organizations below, or access our complete list of healthcare IT associations.

American Academy of Medical Administrators: AAMA represents multi-disciplinary healthcare management at all levels, within all health organizations. It promotes professional development and credentials through continuing education and research in healthcare management. AAMA provides colleges that focus on specific specialties of healthcare administration, including health plan management, healthcare information and oncology.

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Medical Imaging Technology at Baton Rouge General Reduces Report Turnaround Time to 3 Hours

Baton Rouge General Medical Center – particularly its radiology department – has a long history of staying on the forefront of the technology curve. It was the first in the US to operate a radiation therapy unit, the first in its region to offer endoscopic ultrasounds and the first in the state to offer portable digital radiology systems.

That long-standing history is what led it to adopt the next generation of medical imaging technology.

The medical center needed to leverage medical imaging technology that could enable fast, easy access to digital images across the enterprise. Plus, it needed a solution that would help it meet the meaningful use requirements associated with tapping into federal stimulus incentives.

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