Files and More Files: How Are Hospitals Using Cloud PACS to Navigate the Data Flood?.

Cloud PACS That Fit the Rural Provider

Providers today know it’s time for a 100 percent custom PACS solution that does not depend on the entire PACS contained within one server. They want a PACS solution that brings with it an ability for each component to operate independently. The caveat is that they don’t want to pay to gain access to each exam and every image stored in the PACS. This is where cloud PACS steps up to deliver.

The way it works in most facilities today is that patient information is managed and stored using exclusive formats, despite the availability of standard formatting options. With this method, sharing patient information beyond their specific boundaries is practically impossible. Providers should be able to exchange data between PACS, regardless of which vendor built them.

PACS storage is traditionally very expensive and extremely difficult to manage, which has pushed more and more hospitals to outsource all or part of their digital imaging archiving needs. Unfortunately, some of these solutions offer little flexibility and still cost too much.

The expenses related to storing the large data files found in medical imaging is nearly growing out of control, especially for smaller providers with limited budgets. There was a time when all the images could be kept on CDs, which were stored on-site. While this might have been modern when it first came out, it doesn’t provide a solution when it comes to sharing images with other providers. Furthermore, the CD burning technology is unreliable, takes up too much space, and necessitates duplicate exams when something goes wrong.

A better solution is found in the cloud where all images are filed and available for sharing at any time. Using secure data centers spread out geographically, vendors offering cloud-based storage, or cloud PACS, can bring many efficiencies to clients, and at a cost that works within even the smallest provider’s budget. When vendors use true VNA technology, they give clients access to images regardless of what system they’re running in any given department.

The healthcare industry might have shied away from cloud-based solutions in the beginning for fear of having data compromised, which leads to hefty fines; there no longer exists the same level of paranoia. Cloud-based vendors must provide the most secure environment where breaches are 99.9 percent not likely to occur.

At OffSite Image Management, Inc., we refer to our cloud PACS solution as a PACS VNA, because we don’t demand that you migrate all your data. Instead, you get to keep your legacy data where it is and save on expenses. Specifically, our solution is called iQ-PACS, and it’s highly scalable, which means it can continue to meet your needs as you grow or as your data grows.

We have installed our solution in more than 5,000 facilities across 97 countries – ranging from small imaging centers to large multi-modality, multi-site hospital installations. This tool combines a central storage and management system with web-based image distribution. Contact us today and learn more about our solutions.