Last summer brought something of a media moment for mammography in the U.S. The spotlight shone on the star—3-D imaging for breast-cancer screening—after the Journal of the American Medical Association published a study showing that tomosynthesis, when added to digital mammography, is a natural at catching invasive cancers while exposing false positives as impostors.

Tomosynthesis is a relatively new type of imaging technology that utilizes x-rays to create a 3-dimensional image of the breast and is mainly used to detect and diagnose cancers. Not yet considered the standard in clinical care, most imaging centers still employ conventional digital mammograms as their primary method of detecting breast cancer. Conventional mammograms take x-rays of the breast from different angles to create cross-sectional 2-dimensional images. Imaging centers must decide if replacing existing conventional mammography systems with tomosynthesis makes sense from a clinical and financial perspective. What are some factors that drive this decision making process? Will adding this technology to your imaging center create value for shareholders?

Smaller healthcare providers are struggling to catch up with their larger counterparts, but across the board more organizations are embracing the 10th revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10) for medical coding compared with a year ago. 

RamSoft PowerServer 6.0 has achieved ONC HIT 2014 Edition complete EHR certification, which designates that the software is capable of supporting eligible providers with meeting the Stage 1 and Stage 2 Meaningful Use measures required to qualify for funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).  PowerServer 6.0 was certified on October 10, 2014 by ICSA Labs, an Office of the National Coordinator-Authorized Certification Body (ONC-ACB) and is compliant in accordance with applicable criteria adopted by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ClearChoiceMD, the New Hampshire-based chain of 10 high-end urgent care clinics in Northern New England, has installed digital x-ray systems and PACS in all its locations. 

Three days at RBMA’s Fall Educational Conference in Seattle seemed hardly enough time to attend educational sessions, network with colleagues, share best practices and visit the exhibit hall, but attendees took advantage of every minute to discuss the topics most important to them. From ICD-10 preparations to joint ventures and regional radiology associations, radiology’s business managers were eager to share and learn new ideas from each other.

Virtual Radiologic has added a new service aimed at radiology practices that want to know how they’re performing 24/7 in all sorts of clinical and operational activities.

Dr. Karen DeSalvo recently announced her departure from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology to assist in the federal government's Ebola response efforts, but will continue to be involved in federal health information technology efforts as well.