Imaging Technology News - November/December 2008 - (Page 42)

> > special report CT, MR continued from page 40 Medical Center in Meyersdale, PA.. The center, located in southwestern Pennsylvania, purchased a Siemens SOMATOM Emotion 16-Slice CT scanner this year as an upgrade from their single-slice CT. The SOMATOM Emotion has allowed Meyersdale to perform more complex CT exams, notably CT angiography and pulmonary embolism chest scans, allowing the center to treat local residents who may have been forced to travel up to 40 miles away for those scans before, said Siemens Medical Solutions. Meyersdale is now performing 20 more CT scans per month, resulting in an increased referral pattern and a 35 percent increase in gross charges. Morgan believes any Medicare cuts made by a new Congress wouldn’t effect rural hospitals in 2009. “Anything Congress might do won’t impact the market until 2010,” Morgan said. “My perception is [rural hospitals] are looking to upgrade now.” < add [a new CT or MRI system] gives that additional leverage to make sure that rural hometown health is being delivered locally and that they are able to capture and contain their market.” Even with a sluggish economy, Morgan hasn’t seen many indications that rural hospitals are being negatively affected. “It certainly does not appear there is a slowdown in improving their facilities or the services they offer,” Morgan said. “I’ve not seen an impact. We’ve had significant time to have the high gas prices, the food prices and everything else that would impact healthcare facilities and it hasn’t taken a toll yet on rural hospitals.” One example of a CAH adding a CT system to better serve its area is Meyersdale Teleradiology’s Growth continued from page 41 working as a teleradiology specialist. “If you’re a neuroradiologist, you don’t want to go to a rural hospital and read musculoskeletal images,” Seidelman said. But this could further erode the quality of healthcare offered in rural areas, says James Backstrom, M.D., chief medical officer of Pittsburgh, PA-based Foundation Radiology Group. “As the pool of radiologists gets less and less, rural areas, especially, will get less qualified radiologists,” he noted. But while there might be fewer on-site radiologists in these areas, there are still qualified teleradiologists available when needed — 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, says Dr. Rose. “Because subspecialists would rather read more of their subspecialty, they are attracted to teleradiology where they can fill their day with such interpretations from a variety of facilities. Together, this has allowed the smaller and/or rural general radiology practices to bring subspecialty radiology to their facilities through teleradiology. Indeed, there are reports of a worsening radiologist shortage, but this seems to be mostly due to new radiologists being progressively less attracted to on-site, rural positions. The number of radiologists moving to teleradiology seems to be increasing. Perhaps this evolving manpower issue will drive the staffing of fewer on-site radiologists and allow more work to be done by teleradiology services which can be more efficient in the face of increasing study volumes.” As the line between traditional radiology and teleradiology disappears, radiologists are presented with more options. Among these, according to Dr. Rose, is the conversion of hospital radiologists to teleradiologists. Driving this particular movement are three major factors, he notes: lifestyle, politics and finance. “Lifestyle changes are profound with teleradiology. No driving to and from work, live anywhere you want, your own office with your own stuff, generally more flexible schedule, personal matters can be more easily attended to, and usually an efficient reading system. “Indeed, hospital politics are a necessary evil, but it seems most radiologists don’t want to deal with them. A teleradiology company generally manages the whole practice and the radiologist just reads the cases. They are generally not involved in contract negotiations, equipment purchase, HR issues, billing matters or legal issues. It has been termed a ‘clean radiology job,’” said Dr. Rose. He added, “Financial pressures from the DRA (Deficit Reduction Act) have driven down reimbursements for various studies. On-site radiologists report more ‘non-revenue generating’ activities and feel bogged down by inefficiencies due to being on-site.” Still, Dr. Rose believes that a balance between on-site radiologists and teleradiPET/CT continued from page 39 ologists can be achieved. “I think radiology would have been a combination of onsite and off-site manpower from the start if we could have done it,” he said. “Indeed, the ACR is likely evaluating how they can be of service in guiding the redistribution of on-site and off-site reads in a fashion that preserves the quality, integrity and spirit of this great specialty.” Safeguarding quality Reports show that the DRA has eliminated up to 30 percent of federal reimbursements for readings, prompting some traditional radiology groups to increase procedure volume or to add teleradiology services to bolster their bottom lines. But reduced reimbursements are also exacerbating the current shortage of radiologists, which, says Dr. Backstrom, will get worse. In an effort to educate the public and Congress about the role of radiologists and the need for adequate reimbursements, the ACR is rolling out a nationwide branding campaign called the “Face of Radiology.” Interestingly, this campaign does not target teleradiology companies that try to cut costs by using foreign-based readers, but self-referring physicians — those specialists who own their own imaging equipment and may not be ACR-accredited. Shawn Farley, public relations manager for the ACR, says self-referrals are one reason cited for the increased number of imaging tests ordered. And too many unnecessary tests expose patients to unnecessary levels of radiation, he says. Plus, non-radiologist physicians who read their own images may not know how to interpret them correctly, thereby increasing the risk of errors, Farley says. He also points out that from 1998-2005, the non-radiologists’ share of in-office MRI and CT imaging doubled and tripled respectively. These physicians also received more than double the amount of Medicare dollars paid to radiologists during the same period, translating to approximately $4 billion. For More Information When the campaign’s launch was www.charlotteradiology.com announced, Dr. Moore stated: “It is important www.frg-rad.com that radiologists make their role in patient care known so that patients are aware of radiolowww.franklin-seidelmann.com gy’s tremendous contribution to their wellwww.nightrays.com being, and can choose to receive care from the physicians most qualified to provide it.” < “Currently under development, this ‘economically priced’ PET system is speculated to cost approximately $600,000 dollars. With a small footprint and lower costs, the PET camera is expected to directly compete with the mobile dedicated-cardiac SPECT/CT cameras within the primary-care physician and cardiologist office setting, which represents the largest (and most lucrative) untapped market segment within the MPI industry, said Chong. With the wave of new radiopharmaceuticals being developed for cardiac imaging, the development of more affordable PET/CT systems specifically designed for cardiac use, the recent attainment of coverage for the Rubidium-82 generator and growing interest among its users, PET/CT in the MPI market is well on its way to attaining its place as the prime choice for cardiac imaging. “If PET/CT perfusion is able to successfully penetrate this market segment,” said Chong, “the modality may finally be able to shake off its misconception of being an ‘oncology-only’ modality.” special report > N o v / D e c 2 0 0 8 http://new.reillycomm.com/imaging/special-report-b.php http://www.charlotteradiology.com http://www.frg-rad.com http://www.franklin-seidelmann.com http://www.nightrays.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Image Technology News - November 2008

Image Technology News - November 2008 Contents RSNA CT Systems Imaging An Image is Worth a Thousand Words Ultrasound Systems MBI Takes on FFDM Trouble in Multi-PACS Paradise When is Appropriateness Criteria Appropriate? RIS/PACS in a Web 2.0 World Digital Mammography Helps Center Continue its Commitment to the Best in Patient-Focused Breast Cancer Cardiovascular Imaging Systems PARCA Extends Expertise to World PACS Market

Image Technology News - November 2008

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