The sheer volume of data that goes into healthcare is difficult to keep up with, but pile on top of that the growing file sizes of medical images and you quickly see why enterprise imaging improvements are a key focus for many radiology departments.
Enterprise imaging today is closely tied to cloud-based solutions. Cloud-based vendors are tying many different solutions into their offerings, including cloud PACS and disaster recovery tools, which makes this method of imaging so attractive. Radiology, in fact, has been one of the early adopters of cloud-based technology, and that has not changed as the need for more robust services grows.
Branching Out
One of the challenges with some PACS solutions is that they are built to serve only radiology. Medical imaging is more far-reaching today, meaning everyone from oncology to cardiology is in need of imaging that can help them treat patients. It’s become obvious that a PACS serving only radiology is no longer going to be enough.
Enterprise imaging involves serving more than just one department, and healthcare providers are implementing strategies that take the silo out of the picture and branch out so that everyone with a vested interest in images has quick and easy, yet secure, access.
Off-Premise Solutions
Enterprise imaging was once adopted via on-premise hardware and software. Given the capital investment required for this method, facilities with smaller budgets were left out of adopting improvements. Whether it’s because of the budget, lack of personnel qualified to manage and maintain the latest hardware, or just a lack of real estate to house the hardware, the on-premise solution was not possible. That has changed with cloud computing.
When you partner with a cloud-based vendor of imaging solutions, you don’t have to make capital investments, nor do you have to scramble to find qualified personnel to manage your system. Everything lives in the cloud, which means there is zero administration on your part.
Other Advantages
Partnering with the right cloud vendor for enterprise imaging services brings a host of advantages, including browser agnostic viewing of images. If your radiologists have struggled trying to read images remotely, the browser agnostic viewer makes it easy. All you need is to use a browser that supports HTML5 and you’re in.
You also get annual software upgrades (depending on your service agreement), which means you’re always going to be up to date with the latest innovations. Furthermore, you get automation services, such as rule-base auto-forwarding of data sets. Finally, there is enhanced auto-routing due to advanced scheduling options to look forward to.
At OffSite Image Management, we provide enterprise imaging services that are a perfect match for critical access and specialty hospitals that have long thought they couldn’t gain access to such high-tech offerings. Contact us and let’s talk about how we can outfit you with solutions that will improve your quality of care and save you money.
