Report: Cloud-based image sharing could be on the rise
Chilmark Research predicts that radiology departments will turn to cloud-based computing tools as physical media is an ineffective, costly and slow way to store and transport images. The market research firm’s findings were presented in a November report sponsored by lifeIMAGE, a health IT services provider.
Chilmark researchers determined that as healthcare organizations change delivery models to reflect more collaborative efforts, problems with current image delivery systems will need to be addressed.
“Despite the enormous importance of imaging in the care delivery process and the numerous advances that have occurred, the ability for a care provider to readily exchange and collaborate on a given imaging study remains a challenge,” researchers wrote.
“If imaging advances have played such an important role in improving care, might not the ability for physicians across the broad care team to proactively exchange and collaborate on a given imaging study enhance the care process even more, especially when such care processes occur over a wide range of settings?” they continued.
Chilmark researchers believe that healthcare organizations will need to provide better imaging storage and delivery services in order to survive the shift from payment models based on quantity to ones based on quality.
“A key factor contributing to a healthcare organization’s ability to support outcomes-based reimbursement models is the ability to manage care across numerous care settings,” researchers wrote.
“Organizations will need to adopt new collaborative processes and technologies that support them,” they continued. “If one looks to imaging, this means moving away from the current use of physical media for image exchange to one based on the internet,” they continued.
According to researchers, the problem with current storage and delivery systems, PACS, is that they often leave patients responsible for transportation of physical media, fail to detect duplicate services and discourage collaboration.
“Like many other departments and specialties within a large healthcare organization, radiology has been a silo of practice with its own distinct systems including IT,” researchers wrote.
“The use of physical media for image exchange simply does not support real-time collaboration and it certainly creates a number of internal workflow challenges for the admitting hospital,” they continued.
Researchers estimated that radiology departments would produce 600 million images in the upcoming year and believe cloud-based image storage and delivery systems will prove to be the best method for managing them. They indicated that cloud-based platforms are superior to physical media because they are easier to use, allow near instantaneous distribution, offer improved security and provide opportunities for telemedicine.
“While our research found an industry that is only now beginning to look at cloud-based services, what we found in our interviews was such a high level of enthusiasm for such services that were seen to address a wide range of issues,” researchers wrote.
As organizations currently using cloud-based image sharing systems begin to realize their benefits, researchers predicted that “other healthcare organizations will also turn to such solutions to maintain parity in their community.”
Chilmark researchers determined that as healthcare organizations change delivery models to reflect more collaborative efforts, problems with current image delivery systems will need to be addressed.
“Despite the enormous importance of imaging in the care delivery process and the numerous advances that have occurred, the ability for a care provider to readily exchange and collaborate on a given imaging study remains a challenge,” researchers wrote.
“If imaging advances have played such an important role in improving care, might not the ability for physicians across the broad care team to proactively exchange and collaborate on a given imaging study enhance the care process even more, especially when such care processes occur over a wide range of settings?” they continued.
Chilmark researchers believe that healthcare organizations will need to provide better imaging storage and delivery services in order to survive the shift from payment models based on quantity to ones based on quality.
“A key factor contributing to a healthcare organization’s ability to support outcomes-based reimbursement models is the ability to manage care across numerous care settings,” researchers wrote.
“Organizations will need to adopt new collaborative processes and technologies that support them,” they continued. “If one looks to imaging, this means moving away from the current use of physical media for image exchange to one based on the internet,” they continued.
According to researchers, the problem with current storage and delivery systems, PACS, is that they often leave patients responsible for transportation of physical media, fail to detect duplicate services and discourage collaboration.
“Like many other departments and specialties within a large healthcare organization, radiology has been a silo of practice with its own distinct systems including IT,” researchers wrote.
“The use of physical media for image exchange simply does not support real-time collaboration and it certainly creates a number of internal workflow challenges for the admitting hospital,” they continued.
Researchers estimated that radiology departments would produce 600 million images in the upcoming year and believe cloud-based image storage and delivery systems will prove to be the best method for managing them. They indicated that cloud-based platforms are superior to physical media because they are easier to use, allow near instantaneous distribution, offer improved security and provide opportunities for telemedicine.
“While our research found an industry that is only now beginning to look at cloud-based services, what we found in our interviews was such a high level of enthusiasm for such services that were seen to address a wide range of issues,” researchers wrote.
As organizations currently using cloud-based image sharing systems begin to realize their benefits, researchers predicted that “other healthcare organizations will also turn to such solutions to maintain parity in their community.”