Enterprise Imaging and Interoperability: Are we Really Getting Anywhere?.

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The buzzwords surrounding healthcare IT processes are many. There is VNA, true VNA, deconstructing PACS, and now we’re hearing more about enterprise imaging. What exactly is enterprise imaging? Some refer to it as “EI,” but enterprise imaging is not a new idea. However, the technology surrounding it is getting more technical and complex. The goal of EI is to make sure the right image gets to the right place at the right time. When carried out correctly, this can completely change the way a healthcare provider functions.

Some providers already have their PACS set up, their electronic health record system in order, and their computerized physician order entry technology in place, but they need an integrated clinical image repository through which they can better share images. Many providers are seeking a solution that gives them intelligent lifecycle management and enterprise imaging capabilities. In many cases, achieving the right EI solution means leaning on vendor neutral archive technology that utilizes a zero-footprint viewer.

VNA can free radiology departments and other departments from being tethered to specific PACS, thus releasing them from the constraints that many providers find in their quest to archive, access and share images across departments and across disparate facilities. Healthcare providers require a solution that comes in one package; one that can gather all media types and offer more functionality, both financially and clinically. An enterprise solution will offer a single view of the patient records, including images, giving every department the same, unfettered view of the information they need to treat patients with more consistency.

With enterprise imaging solutions, physicians embrace better productivity and eliminate the need for duplicating exams, which is a common problem when proprietary roadblocks hold up imaging transfers. CD burning technology is still in use with many healthcare providers. This technology was the next step away from film. However, as electronic health records have become mandatory and radiologists are required to make their reports available in electronic form within 24 hours of the exam, CD burning is an antiquated technology that has outlived its usefulness.

While CDs often do serve as a means of sharing images from department to department or from one facility to another, the technology takes up a lot of space and isn’t 100 percent reliable. CDs are frequently lost, adding compliance risks to various HIPAA regulations. A more advantageous solution is cloud-based VNA solutions that negate the need for a physical copy of medical images. Instead, providers are provided a secure URL from which they can view any type of image file.

This is technology developed by OffSite Image Management, Inc. Our solution is called Virtual CD and it is allowing providers to free up space once used for burning CDs. Instead of waiting in line to have their CDs burned, sometimes incorrectly, radiologists can simply supply clinicians with a URL to gain access to images. For more information about how this works, contact us today.