Health Imaging & IT - May 2008 - (Page 53)

reads in a single click. Plus, information is automatically captured in a database for review and quality assurance. An interface with the Meditech RIS automatically sends PACS data to the RIS for streamlined billing. The interface also enables sharing of clinical data such as lab results between the RIS and PACS, minimizing the need for physicians to log onto multiple systems to access information. Finally, specialized applications including 3D and PET fusion are available on the PACS workstation, eliminating the need for workflow-busting specialized workstations. chAllenge #3 integrating multiple paCs in the rural setting Radiology Consultants of Iowa in Cedar Rapids, is a 25-radiologist practice providing professional services at 12 hospitals. Business is booming with radiologists reading 450,000 studies annually. CIO Joe Moore explains the group’s workflow challenges. “We try to maintain the focus on imaging services. Some of our hospitals are located two hours away. Radiologists were spending too much time on the road traveling to different sites. Plus, each hospital is outfitted with different image management technology. Radiologists were forced to learn to interface with a variety of applications.” The answer seemed simple. A single umbrella PACS could consolidate studies into one worklist to reduce travel time, enable subspecialty review and level workflow over the course of a day. The practice turned to NeoTool NeoIntegrate interface engine and Philips Healthcare iSite PACS in March 2005 to consolidate workflow. NeoIntegrate provides interfaces between iSite and eight different RIS and voice recognition systems to deliver a unified workflow. The new workflow is characterized by a single, combined worklist. Exams are listed in the order received and identified as STAT or routed to subspecialists as necessary. Results include: › 87 percent of final reports are completed in less than 60 minutes › 85 percent of ER reads are completed in less than 30 minutes › 50 percent reduction in radiologists’ travel “If a practice is focused on outcomes, radiologists can’t bounce around to different systems. They need to remain in one system to stay efficient,” sums Moore. chAllenge #4 adjusting for seasonal spikes Florida Medical Clinic, a 13-site outpatient practice headquartered in Zephyrills, Fla., sees a 50 percent increase in the local population between October and April every year. During the winter months, scan volume tends to increase 25 to 30 percent, says Patt Hurley, assistant practice administrator. In 2006, the practice tapped into technology to help address its workflow challenges, deploying Sage Software Intergy EHR, [ Radiology Consultants of Iowa in Cedar Rapids has achieved a single, combined worklist that merges images from 12 hospitals (8 different RIS and voice recognition systems) via the NeoTool NeoIntegrate interface engine and Philips Healthcare iSite PACS (shown here). ] HealthImaging.com May 2008 | Health Imaging & IT 5 http://HealthImaging.com

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

Health Imaging & IT - May 2008 Contents On the Web The Enterprise News Update Convention Spotlight: SIIM 2008 Healthcare IT Salary Survey Survey Findings Inside the Transition to Next-Generation Image Management Blurring the Lines: Interfaced vs. Integrated RIS/PACS The Insider's Primer: Taming the Workflow Beast - Five Facilities Tell How Availability, Applications Drive New Archive Strategies Modality Review Managing Technology Inside Technology Reader's Resource Stat Sheet

Health Imaging & IT - May 2008

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