Learning from the things that challenge us are known as “teachable moments.” Healthcare providers are certainly getting a lesson in these odd times. For those feeling the impact, bottlenecks are a daily issue. Are your PACS holding you back? Are there updates you can make, or upgrades that can better position your facility for success for future pandemics?
There are those who point out that interoperability has never been fully vetted for times when healthcare facilities are at capacity. For example, are DICOM and HL-7 able to work in concert and keep up with demands? Can different providers work together to share information that leads to better outcomes? Furthermore, are PACS up to the task, as much of this data will be medical image-related?
Centralizing Data
Relying on a repository for easy access to medical images and other data could be of great benefit to the many professionals working to speed through processes without missing a beat. Having a vendor neutral archive (VNA) would be an integral technology in this unified effort. Through VNA, anyone who needs access to imaging can easily gain it.
And if centralizing data can help with access issues, how about teleradiology solutions entering the mix? Teleradiology hasn’t always been reliable due mostly to tracking exams in the process. For example, an exam is sent off but nobody really knows who has gotten it and when it will be read. Should a priority come up and the exam needs to be expedited, there is no way to make that happen.
Thanks to newly improved cloud-based teleradiology solutions, accountability can finally enter into the process, offering more visibility into the life of the process and for priority changes to be a non-issue. When a radiology department becomes bogged down by an influx of cases, a highly functioning teleradiology solution can make a huge difference, easing the caseload by improving the workflow process, and in effect, improving patient care.
PACS Improvements
Another way to ease the workload and workflow is to take on an improved approach to PACS, because no matter how new your PACS might be, there are probably things you’re asking it to do that it simply can’t. With cloud-based PACS solutions, these requests become far less a burden.
At OffSite Image Management, we’ve developed a cloud-based PACS solution that is highly functional and includes tools that have proven to reduce costs while improving patient care. To find out more about our approach to PACS and how we can ease your workflow now and for future pandemics, contact us.
