Adopt the Cloud to Bring More Value, Better Payments to Radiology

Written by Ronny Bachrach on July 15, 2014. Posted in Cloud, Digital Radiography and PACS

While medical imaging is valuable to physicians for the development of accurate treatment plans, the radiologists themselves serve an important role in the care process. They can wear a variety of hats that make them integral to improving quality of care.

As part of health care reform, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released the Physician Quality Reporting system to encourage radiologists and other doctors to submit meaningful information to CMS for review. According to the American College of Radiology, depending on their performance, these providers would receive either incentive payments in the form of bonuses or adjustments to their reimbursements that serve as penalties for poor performance.

The calendar year of 2014 is the last chance for doctors to receive an incentive from the PQRS. From 2015 and beyond, there is an opportunity to obtain bonuses from the Physician Value-Based Payment Modifier, the updated quality system from CMS.

Moving to new measurements
With the industry as a whole being overhauled to improve clinical quality and cut down on excessive spending, physicians working in diagnostic radiology are being closely examined by agencies like the ACR and CMS. They need to be able to prove the value of their services, as opposed to the old guard of quantity-based performance.

“The huge paradigm shift going on now in all of health care delivery, is this transition from volume to value, and certainly radiology needs to find its space in it,” said Richard Duszak, M.D., vice chair for health policy and practice, Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences at Emory University School of Medicine, quoted by Diagnostic Imaging.

Previously, the traditional payment structure for radiologists was based on individual studies being performed and paid for. However, data-driven metrics gleaned from electronic health records, PACS and other health IT systems has spurred the mission for finding new models of care delivery that rely on quality and not quantity. But determining value for radiologists is challenging, as there are many factors to consider, such as imaging appropriateness and safety, clinical efficiency and patient satisfaction.

Providing quality at a low cost
The trick for radiologists will be finding out how to conduct their services without increasing clinical expenses for both themselves and patients. A possible solution to this prevalent issue is adopting cloud-based PACS systems. These low-cost platforms take advantage of cloud computing by removing the need for on-site IT infrastructure, like clunky servers.

Moving important patient data to a central database also enables sharing of information with other health systems. With stage 2 of Meaningful Use calling for the expansion of data exchange among facilities, the cloud could help practices achieve success with this federal stipulation.

This health IT platform can facilitate reductions in spending and time wasted for reading turnarounds. By accessing studies through the Web from a single interface, multiple radiologists can view digital imaging results and reports, and offer insight to referring physicians. This process can eliminate lengthy hospital stays, reduce readmissions and decrease the threat of overexposure to radiation as a result of repeated procedures.

Contact Viztek for more information.

Ronny Bachrach

Ronny Bachrach

Marketing Director at Viztek LLC
Responsible for all marketing activities including, press, advertising, trade show coordination, website management, dealer and customer communications.
Ronny Bachrach
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