Facility Management

Latest News


CME Content


CHICAGO - Passing compact discs full of diagnostic images from institutions to patients and back will soon seem as archaic as “sneakernet” file transfer by floppy disk. That, at least, is the hope of the people behind RSNA Image Share, a $4.7 million initiative funded through the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) that was presented at RSNA Tuesday.

In the age of healthcare reform, boosting patient satisfaction with the services you provide is critical to reimbursement. Many of you have purchased open or wide-bore MRI machines with higher Tesla strength to make your claustrophobic patients more comfortable. Or maybe you’ve added a scanner just for children. But your imaging technology is only part of the fix, according to some in the industry.

A big buzzword in radiology currently is patient experience. Many practices have invested in updated machines and staff training to make sure the imaging process goes as smoothly for your patients as possible.

Radiologists and imaging groups should discuss with their IT vendors the plans and strategies for certifying their technology under the federal meaningful use program, said Keith Dreyer, DO, PhD, vice chair of radiology informatics at Massachusetts General Hospital, speaking Thursday at the American College of Radiology’s inaugural Imaging Informatics Summit in Washington, D.C.

OK, so saving the planet’s not quite as simple as turning off your computer. But radiologists can cut electricity use and save their practices money with judicious use of a workstation’s and monitor’s “off” switch when wrapping up for the day. That’s according to common sense - as well as a study in the November issue of the Journal of the American College of Radiology.

If you’ve seen fewer and fewer physicians referring patients to your center for imaging services over the past five years, you’re not alone. The decline is a nationwide trend, and many industry consultants believe that to fortify your bottom line, you must go on the offensive.

Diagnostic Imaging spoke with Dr. Johnsey Leef III, a radiologist with Charleston Area Medical Center in Charleston, WV, about how the industry is responding to the call for lower dose imaging and what his department is doing to address the issue.

Diagnostic Imaging reached out to Taylor Moorehead, regional partner, West region at Zotec Partners, a medical billing, practice management, and Radiology Information Systems software company, to discuss the impact of Radiology Benefit Managers and technology aimed at helping practices deal with the demands.