Health Imaging & IT - January 2008 - (Page 42)

PeoPle & Technology By Sarah Lamberti Subspecialty Reading SeRviceS Quality Reads • Peace of Mind • 24/7 With the emergence of advanced imaging capabilities for MRI, multidetector CT, SPECT/CT and PET/CT, the demand for subspecialty expertise for radiology reading has skyrocketed over the last few years. In fact, the use of radiology has tripled since 2003. Clinicians are now looking for more precise, high-quality, in-depth reports for better diagnoses within 24 hours. [ ProScan radiologists and fellows discuss cases in their Cincinnati, Ohio, “West Wing” reading room. ] Teleradiology service providers are shining a light at the end of the tunnel. In addition to providing “nighthawk” hours, or afterhours support, many vendors have expanded their service offerings to include fellowship-trained, board-certified radiologists in areas such as neuroradiology, CT virtual colonoscopy and orthopedics who can deliver detailed reports in a matter of minutes, rather than days or even weeks, in a multitude of subspecialties. More radiology departments and groups are turning to reading services providers for subspecialty expertise than ever before. Demand for expertise 24/7 Radiologic Associates is a 20-radiologist group comprised of Hudson Valley Imaging, Orange Regional Medical Center and St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital, which serves Orange County and the Hudson Valley area in New York. Two years ago, the company—which had contracted with the full-service teleradiology provider Imaging On Call (IOC) for after-hours support—determined it needed more than routine “nighthawk” coverage. The group needed to expand their coverage to keep up with the increased demand from referring clinicians for expertise in neuroradiology cases, according to Joseph F. Yacovone, MD, president of the Middletown, N.Y.-based practice. The practice performs approximately 350,000 to 400,000 imaging procedures per year. Offering after-hour support for that expertise, however, raised concerns over the level of quality of the reads, says Yacovone. “The bar has been raised quite a bit as to the quality of readings during off-time hours,” he says. “We have to be as accurate as possible with every single reading whether it is done at 2 p.m., 6 p.m. or 3 a.m.—we cannot afford to make a mistake.” Yacovone says that the difficulty is that “when people are on call, obviously not every one is trained in a subspecialty area such as neuroradiology, body CT, musculoskeletal imaging or interventional imaging.” Because of that, when the practice does have a particularly difficult neuroradiology HealthImaging.com 42 Health Imaging & IT | January 2008 http://HealthImaging.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Health Imaging & IT - January 2008

Health Imaging & IT Table of Contents On the Web The Enterprise: Is More Better? News Update A Look Inside Next-Generation Multidetector CT Convention Spotlight: RSNA in Review RIS/PACS in the Imaging Center Sweden: A Study in Mammography Excellence The Votes are in: Yea for Speech in U.S. Capital & Beyond Subspecialty Reading Services: Quality Reads, Peace of Mind, 24/7 Enterprise Lung CAD Eases Workflow Advertisers Index Company Index Coming Soon Stat Sheet

Health Imaging & IT - January 2008

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