Web PACS Enable Real-Time Collaboration and Consultation

It's true; thanks to modern web PACS (Picture Archive and Communication systems), medical professionals are no longer limited by time and space as to with whom they can collaborate and consult for difficult cases. Viztek® PACS are only one of the web PACS available using the DICOM imaging protocol, but its numerous user-friendly and cost effective features have quickly made it one of the most popular among health care professionals.
A Short History of Web PACS

One of the first digital medical imaging systems was put into place at the Department of Radiology at the Ohio State University Medical Center back in 1992 – almost at the beginning of the Internet Era. The cost exceeded well over a quarter million dollars; as you might imagine, this exorbitant price tag but such PACS servers out of reach for all but the most prestigious and well-funded medical facilities.

Nonetheless, this web PACS has proved to be an excellent investment; over the past decade and a half, the OHUMC system has paid for itself four times over, and has reduced the time between initial patient diagnosis and physician dictation to three hours – resulting in a savings of over 7000 man-hours.

Meanwhile, the cost of PC-based technology has continued its steep decline over the past several years, and this has affected the cost of digital PACS servers as well. Today, there is no clinic or other health care facility that can afford to be without a reliable web based PACS.

The DICOM Advantage

DICOM web based PACS such as the Vistek® PACS make it possible for medical images made in any modality to be viewed by authorized personnel using a standard PC monitor over a local area network as well as the World Wide Web. What this means for health care professionals is greater access to colleagues when consultation and collaboration is required – which can now be carried out over the Internet in real time. No longer is it necessary to risk having valuable medical images hand delivered either via post or courier.

In addition, web based PACS have made archival chores much easier and more efficient. Medical images can be digitally archived using a server and backed up onto DVDs or compact discs in any way that works best for the clinic or practice. A patient's x-rays or MRI results, saved in DICOM format, can be stored in the same digital file as his/her insurance information and medical history, and quickly located using the Windows or Safari search function on PC or Macintosh platforms. In addition the Vistek® PACS offers additional user-friendly features that are definitely worth learning about.

Economical and efficient, a web PACS is something no health care facility should be without. Web based PACS are the future of diagnostic medicine and records-keeping, and thanks to the continuing drop in the cost of PC technology, web PACS are more affordable than ever.

Jonathon Blocker writes about web based pacs. With installations at over 450 imaging centers and hospitals; Dicom Solutions is one of the leading distributors in the medical imaging industry.