In a recent interview at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) conference, Eliot Siegel, M.D., discussed a variety of potential benefits with cloud-based image management in radiology, ranging from enhanced data security and economies of scale to improved access to a variety of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions to increase efficiency.
While there are varied perspectives on what “the cloud” represents for radiologists, Eliot Siegel, M.D., sees the promise of increased efficiency and improved patient care as the field continues to grapple with increasing imaging volume and radiologist shortages.
Beyond off-site storage of medical imaging data, cloud-based resources can provide immediate access to timely PACS updates and alternative backup options, and potentially serve as a centralized hub that may help streamline access to a patient’s clinical history and past imaging from other institutions, noted Dr. Siegel during an interview at the recent Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) conference in Chicago.
“The cloud represents a central repository that could be more patient-centered rather than institution-centered. That is a major advance,” said Dr. Siegel, a professor of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine and vice-chair of Information Systems at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
Dr. Siegel also noted that cloud-based image management could enhance access to a variety of artificial intelligence (AI) platforms.
“Many of the AI vendors are offering software that is really interesting and can help me become safer, more efficient, more effective, and more productive. Many of those are things I need to consume in the cloud,” noted Dr. Siegel. “The potential of being able to send my images up to a site in the cloud and then be able to have all those different AI services and other services that I want to be able to directly interface with in the cloud is extraordinarily compelling.”
In conversations Dr. Siegel has had with information technology (IT) specialists and chief information officers (CIOs), he said he doesn’t hear concerns about data security that he has heard in years past about the cloud. While cost may be the biggest concern expressed about implementation of cloud-based image management, Dr. Siegel said there are considerable costs with local image storage, and it may get to an inflection point where economies of scale become advantageous with companies that provide cloud-based services.
For more insights from Dr. Siegel, watch the video below.
Can AI Facilitate Single-Phase CT Acquisition for COPD Diagnosis and Staging?
December 12th 2024The authors of a new study found that deep learning assessment of single-phase CT scans provides comparable within-one stage accuracies to multiphase CT for detecting and staging chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
The Reading Room: Artificial Intelligence: What RSNA 2020 Offered, and What 2021 Could Bring
December 5th 2020Nina Kottler, M.D., chief medical officer of AI at Radiology Partners, discusses, during RSNA 2020, what new developments the annual meeting provided about these technologies, sessions to access, and what to expect in the coming year.
New Interventional Radiology Research Shows Merits of Genicular Artery Embolization for Knee OA
December 3rd 2024In a cohort of over 160 patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA), including grade 4 in nearly half of the cases, genicular artery embolization led to an 87 percent improvement in the quality of life index, according to research presented at the