While helping to steer 105-bed Western Reserve Hospital in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, toward a remotely hosted PACS solution, Jeffrey Unger, MD, repeatedly voiced one crucial concern: Would he and his fellow radiologists have to wait at their workstations, precious seconds ticking away, while PACS servers sitting hundreds of miles away processed massive datasets?

Radiology Alliance, Tennessee’s largest private practice radiology group, wasn’t necessarily looking for an acquisition or a merger, but when national health solutions partner MEDNAX reached out, it was an opportunity they had to consider. 

There is no doubt that vendor neutral archives (VNAs) have gained favor over the last several years in managing medical images. But there is some debate over whether hospitals really need both a VNA and a PACS. If PACS can do double duty as VNA and PACS, why do you need both? As we see it, you don’t, as long as you have a true enterprise PACS and here’s why.

Nearly two decades ago, the PACS race was on in Southern California’s Inland Empire. The main event pitted the regional medical center, 439-bed Riverside County Regional Medical Center, against the larger 719-bed Loma Linda University Medical Center (LLUMC). In 1998, Riverside won the race by about six months, installing the first PACS in the region and, in the process, becoming the first hospital in the U.S. to select Sectra PACS.

Radiologist Marc Liebeskind, MD, doesn’t need to strain his memory to recall a time when he saw a health insurer’s authorization process come between sound clinical judgment and a patient’s clearly indicated care.

Radiologists operate in a fast-paced work environment, juggling a combination of tasks that includes interpreting studies, and calls from referring physicians.

Recently imagingBiz sat down with the two of McKesson’s General Managers to discuss their views on important current imaging issues.

Case Study: UMass Memorial Health Care wanted to drive quality improvements within radiology services for its system of hospitals and clinics.