Advancing Workflow Issues With VNA
PACS sprawl. Those are two words that radiology departments are familiar with. It’s something that starts out fairly innocently – the department gets a new PACS, they implement it and start using it regularly. Then, it becomes clear that the PACS is an IT system used as a clinical tool and it needs to be managed carefully. Unfortunately, things get out of control when it isn’t properly managed, and the sprawl happens. Can vendor neutral archiving (VNA) come to the rescue?
You’re probably not going to get much help from your vendor once the sprawl begins. They’ll either charge you more to come in and fix it, or they’re going to push you to upgrade the entire system. Fortunately, VNA can address the issues you’re having with your PACS.
The PACS problem really becomes compounded when a facility has multiple PACS, which are often implemented without IT involvement. Downtime becomes a reality, which makes it difficult for physicians to do their jobs as efficiently as possible. Patches, upgrades and basic maintenance is a constant chore, often carried out by a clinician instead of a technician (IT), which means the door is open for mistakes and more downtime. The end result is that there can be no planning for the future while just keeping the system up and running is a constant battle.
VNA can assist providers with multiple PACS because it helps to centralize data and allow it to be accessed and shared without proprietary roadblocks, which are the norm with disparate PACS.
INTEGRIS Health offers an example of how VNA helped solve a disparate PACS problem. Working with a VNA vendor, INTEGRIS revamped their entire enterprise imaging infrastructure using VNA as the foundation. The hospital could rely on the VNA technology to of performing manual data retrievals, which had once been a regular problem.
INTEGRIS connected with a vendor working with “true” VNA technology. We say “true” because there are many vendors operating under their own version of what they believe is VNA. When you begin looking for a VNA solution, make sure the vendor offers the following:
- The ability to store the complete suite of DICOM SOP classes.
- Can handle ADT updates to images stored in the archive.
- Can store objects in a non-proprietary format.
- Provides context management, including the ability to prepare a PACS through HL7 for importing images from disparate PACS.
- Allows for the manipulation of DICOM tags.
- Supports inclusive DICOM query/retrieve specifications.
The multisite environment doesn’t have to be a technological challenge anymore. However, no matter how new your PACS is, there are various jobs it simply cannot do, including some that are vital, like sharing images with other departments and other providers. Instead of paying $300,000 for a new system that allows you to migrate studies to other facilities, find a vendor that offers the true VNA experience.
OffSite Image Management, Inc. is a vendor that is leading the way with true VNA technology. Our solutions can save you money while improving your workflow. Contact us today and let’s talk about your needs.