In 2006, Tenet Healthcare Corp of Dallas, Texas, was operating 20 outpatient imaging centers across the country, and it was watching its outpatient imaging volume continue to slide. Dale Skrnich, senior director of outpatient services for the organization, explains that many of the imaging centers were being operated as hospital departments; “They

The next frontier in radiologist workflow won’t be another enhancement to hanging protocols, a faster processor, or an improved graphical user interface, Eliot Siegel, MD, and Woojin Kim, MD, predict. Instead, these two experts in radiology informatics are looking outside the PACS and its workstations to offer radiologists a clearer view of

When radiologists Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston dropped off their wireless devices at the information-services department, it was a sign of the times. On a mission to verify proper encryption, IT gurus examined all manner of devices—hard drives, flash drives, tablets, and smartphones.

The thought of health IT leaders managing the mobility trend conjures up images of Heracles attempting to slay the multiheaded Hydra. Every time he cut off one head, two more grew in its place: Think iOS®, Android®, Symbian®, BlackBerry®, Windows®, and bada®, with Mango and other mobile platforms in the wings.

Immediate access to patient information is a powerful catalyst for improving the caliber of care in the radiology sector, as well as in other clinical disciplines. For OhioHealth (Columbus), enabling the mobile communications network to handle images represents the next step in enhancing physician collaboration and physician–patient communication,

One of health-care reform’s least controversial mandates was a requirement that hospitals improve their patient-satisfaction scores or take a reimbursement hit. In October 2012, CMS is set to begin withholding 1% of its payments to hospitals, putting the money (estimated at around $850 million for the first year) into a bonus pool that will be

The number-one reason cited by its radiologists for choosing a non-traditional practice setting is to align with a leading organization, according to a survey of its physicians by Radisphere, Westport, Connecticut. Running a close second and third were lifestyle/schedule flexibility and the backing of a professional support team, the poll reveals.