Researchers Focus on Cost Reduction Opportunities in Medical Imaging

Written by Ronny Bachrach on June 15, 2015. Posted in Digital Radiography and PACS, RIS, Software

Health care providers have made good use of innovative clinical technology that enhances diagnostics and treatment options. Many of these products can be implemented across the enterprise to service different departments, improving physician workflow and the overall patient experience.

A recent study, published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology, focused on bringing CT scanners into the emergency department of hospitals to reduce patient waiting times.

Eliminating trips across the facility
CT has become one of the most effective modalities for patient management in the ED as it helps doctors quickly diagnose injuries and conditions the minute people enter the hospital. Past studies in trauma settings have shown that the entire process could be sped up by reducing patient transfers.

Researchers from the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute set out to measure the efficacy of moving medical imaging equipment from the radiology wing down to the ED to improve scan turnarounds, AuntMinnie.com explained. Led by Ania Kielar, M.D., from the Division of Abdominal Imaging and Abdominal MRI, the team of physicians examined patients with nontraumatic abdominal and thoracic symptoms in the EDs at Ottawa Hospital campuses.

The collected reports came from a hospital-based tertiary data center that supplied the school's two ED facilities. Kielar and her colleagues analyzed 1,696 records acquired from the hospitals during a three-month period in 2012. One building had the CT scanner in the ED, while the other kept the equipment in the radiology department 300 meters from the ED on the same floor. It would take roughly two minutes of walking time to move patients down to the scanner.

Overall, the team discovered that placing the CT scanner in the ED significantly reduced times for scan ordering, preliminary reporting and final interpretations. Kielar and her fellow researchers believe their findings could have wide-reaching affects on public health policies regarding equipment placement.

"These findings have particular import for ED programs that have public reporting of ED waiting times, pay-for-results incentives, and competitive funding based on patient outcomes and time-based targets," wrote the authors, quoted by AuntMinnie.com.

Medical technology has proven its place in the industry, helping doctors streamline workflows and reduce waste. For example, an additional study from Weill Cornell Medical College indicated that health information exchange platforms lead to decreases in unnecessary diagnostic imaging.

Cutting out excess procedures
The study was coordinated by lead author Joshua Vest, Ph.D., assistant professor of health care policy and research, who explained that unnecessary or repeat imaging could delay access for patients actually in need of exams. He and his team investigated the timing and frequency of redundant tests in a community-based setting, in addition to the benefits of HIE in reducing the occurrence of these procedures, iHealthBeat reported.

Vest and his colleagues focused on a 196,314 patients in 11 New York counties using data from two major health plans and the Rochester Regional Health Information Organization. They assessed image ordering among radiologists connected to the HIE compared to those who were not.

The results, published in the American Journal of Managed Care, showed 5 percent of patients whose doctors used HIEs had undergone repeated images compared to 8 percent of individuals with providers that did not access the HIE. In addition, the most commonly repeated exams were ultrasounds, X-rays and mammograms, with CT and MRIs representing the least commonly redundant scans.

These findings provide additional support to the advantages of implementing HIEs for improving care coordination by decreasing the frequency of repeated imaging exams. In time, these platforms could also help reduce clinical costs caused by redundant testing and poorly managed care.

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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