If you’re limited in physical space and you want to reduce cost, digital radiology can help you overcome those challenges. There is also the reduction in radiation that attracts many to digital radiology technology. But what about image file archiving and access?
For diagnostic imaging, digital radiology has proven to be a major step in the right direction. Consultation capabilities are expanded, client interaction is enhanced and patient outcomes are improved.
For facilities still using film-based technology, going digital will help improve the quality of images, decrease number of images that have to be redone, save money, be an easier-to-use method and will decrease exposure to radiation.
Managing Files
Most modalities in radiology have gone digital. If you’re invested in digital imaging, you’re going to know a lot about DICOM images. You also know that sometimes, archiving, accessing and viewing these images can be difficult.
In most situations, you can only view the images with the right software, because every proprietary viewer requires proprietary software. Should someone in a different department require access to a photo and they don’t have the same viewer/software setup, you won’t be able to share it with them.
Digital Advantages
Vendors of cloud-based digital radiology solutions often provide services that will drastically improve a department’s approach to daily tasks, from teleradiology to improved PACS. They might offer vendor neutral archiving or specialized tools for working with 3D imaging technology. HL7 reports are made easier to work with and data analytics provide insights that improve the approach to workflow.
In short, working with the right vendor can help you gain more visibility into your processes, reduce your risk of having your data compromised and gain an overall sense of empowerment in your processes.
Next Steps
If you are practicing digital radiology and know very well the barriers involved with sharing images with consulting healthcare professionals, it is important that you know you have third party assistance to count on.
Some third-party providers of digital radiology solutions are cloud based. This means their solutions are offered via a software-as-a-service model. Here are the advantages to moving to a cloud based solution:
- You don’t have to purchase hardware or software
- You don’t have to manage or update hardware or software
- Images can be viewed in a vendor neutral format, from anywhere as long as you can open a browser
- Only pay for storage you need to use
At OffSite Image Management, we’ve covered our customers with robust archiving plans for years, and we also have numerous digital radiology solutions that our customers rely on to lower costs, archive and access images, improve workflow, improve access to patient data and streamline their use of electronic healthcare records.
For more information about what we can offer your radiology department, contact us today.