All health systems want to enhance their image sharing across departments and across PACS to both improve patient care and decrease the cognitive load on clinicians, but advancing the cause can take many forms, and each will face a unique set of challenges, according to a recent healthsystemCIO webinar panel discussion featuring Chuck Podesta, CIO, Renown Health; Dr. Shafiq Rab, EVP/Chief Digital Officer & System CIO at Tufts Medicine; and Dan Brown, CTO AGFA HealthCare.
The Evolving Landscape of Imaging Strategy
Imaging systems are at the heart of modern healthcare delivery, playing a pivotal role in diagnosis, treatment planning, and patient management. However, integrating these systems seamlessly with IT infrastructures remains a complex challenge.
Podesta highlighted the need for an integrated imaging system, drawing parallels with the widespread adoption of unified EHRs like Epic. “Why would you go best of breed when you don’t do that on the textual side of the record? It doesn’t make sense,” he emphasized. Podesta’s stance reflects a broader industry trend towards consolidation and standardization, which promises not only operational efficiencies but also enhanced clinical outcomes through improved data accessibility.
Rab elaborated on the importance of establishing strong governance frameworks to oversee the integration of imaging technologies across health systems. “You have to have a governing body… before anybody starts anything, there has to be governance,” he stated. This governance ensures that strategic decisions about imaging technologies align with organizational goals and clinical needs, involving input from radiologists, cardiologists, dermatologists, and other specialists who rely heavily on imaging data.
Cloud Computing: A Double-Edged Sword?
As healthcare systems increasingly migrate to cloud-based solutions, the discussion explored both the benefits and challenges of this transition. Cloud computing offers scalability, cost-efficiency, and the potential for improved collaboration. However, it also introduces new complexities, particularly around connectivity, data security, and system reliability.
Podesta shared Renown Health’s experience with cloud migration, detailing the unforeseen challenges that emerged. “We moved to the cloud… and expanded our footprint. But it became more complex, especially in terms of network connection speed,” he noted. While the financial benefits of cloud storage—such as reduced costs for expanding data capacity—are clear, the technical hurdles can be significant. Podesta even considered the merits of reverting to on-premises solutions, highlighting the need for a careful evaluation of cloud strategies.
Rab, a trailblazer in adopting cloud technologies, echoed the concerns about reliability and local survivability. “Now we are thinking about creating local survivability… if something goes down, like Office 365, we have to ensure continuity,” he explained. The interdependence on cloud services and third-party vendors like CrowdStrike poses risks, as service outages or cyberattacks can disrupt critical operations.
Brown underscored the necessity of robust disaster recovery and business continuity planning in the cloud era. “What’s the continuity solution? What’s our fallback situation?” he asked, urging healthcare organizations to anticipate failures and ensure that backup systems are in place. This proactive approach is essential to maintaining uninterrupted access to imaging data.
Enhancing Workflow with AI and Emerging Technologies
AI is revolutionizing healthcare, with radiology being one of the most promising areas for its application. The panelists discussed the potential of AI to transform imaging workflows, improving efficiency and accuracy.
Rab highlighted the success of AI in radiology, particularly in assisting radiologists with tasks like image analysis and anomaly detection. “Radiology is one of the fields where AI has succeeded most… it improves speed and brings things up faster,” he noted. However, he stressed that the ultimate goal is to achieve substantial, not just incremental, productivity gains. “People don’t want incremental. They want to save an hour, not just ten minutes,” he added.
Brown emphasized the importance of integrating AI seamlessly into clinical workflows. “It has to be an integrated portion of your workflow… not just another tool added in,” he said. AI should augment, not complicate, the radiologists’ tasks, enabling them to focus on complex cases while routine analyses are handled by algorithms.
The Imperative of Holistic Integration
Holistic integration of imaging systems across healthcare organizations was a recurring theme in the discussion. Effective integration involves not only the technological alignment of different imaging modalities but also the strategic alignment of clinical and operational workflows.
Rab envisioned an ideal state where, “enterprise PACS is not just a network thing, not just a radiology thing, but a complete thing… with no beginning or end.” This vision emphasizes the importance of seamless data access and sharing across departments, enabling comprehensive patient care. For instance, a unified system can provide clinicians with a complete picture of a patient’s medical history, integrating radiology, cardiology, dermatology, and pathology images into a single, coherent narrative.
Podesta echoed the need for a collaborative approach, comparing the integration of imaging systems to the integration achieved with EHRs. “Why wouldn’t you do that in the imaging world?” he asked. He also touched on the critical role of network infrastructure in supporting integrated imaging solutions, cautioning against underestimating the complexities involved in cloud migration. “We probably didn’t take a look at our wide area and local area networks as much as we should have,” he admitted, stressing the importance of thorough planning and assessment.
The Future of Imaging in Healthcare
Looking ahead, the panelists reflected on the future directions of imaging technology and its integration into healthcare systems. Brown highlighted the growing demand for collaborative tools that facilitate team-based care, where radiologists and other specialists work closely together. “Bringing all those tools together for provider-to-provider collaboration is critical,” he said.
The panelists also discussed the ongoing need for innovation in storage solutions, given the exponential growth in imaging data. “With proton therapy, MRIs, and other advanced imaging technologies, the storage demands are massive,” Rab noted. He emphasized the importance of stratifying storage solutions to manage costs effectively while ensuring data availability.
Finally, the conversation turned to the role of healthcare IT leaders in shaping the future of imaging. As custodians of their organizations’ technological landscapes, CIOs and CTOs must balance the promise of new technologies with the practicalities of implementation and maintenance. “There’s a balance there somewhere,” Podesta concluded, reflecting on the need for both innovation and control in managing healthcare IT environments.
To view the On-Demand version of this webinar — “Redefining Imaging Strategy: Unifying Radiology and IT Teams to Boost Image Performance” — please click here.
