ROCHESTER, N.Y., May 6 — Carestream Health has sold fully-featured medical imaging and image information management systems to medical facilities dedicated to serving the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and Citizen Potawatomi Nation, both of Oklahoma. These efficient digital solutions will help improve staff productivity and efficiency, while enhancing patient care at both community healthcare facilities.
The Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Service in Shawnee, Okla., purchased CARESTREAM PACS and a CARESTREAM DRX-Evolution System. With this purchase, the organization has moved from a film and paper-based workflow to an all-digital environment.
The CARESTREAM PACS interfaces with the Citizen Potawatomi Nation’s HIS/RIS System. “Having patient data flow between our information systems and the DRX-Evolution system saves us time and helps eliminate the potential for errors,” said Radiology Coordinator Sharon Gerards, RT (R)(M). “The combination of the PACS and DRX-Evolution has streamlined the imaging process from start to finish. It is much faster for our patients and our staff, and it helps us provide better patient care.”
Gerards estimates the DRX-Evolution system saves 20 minutes per patient exam by replacing manual processes with a fully automated DR suite that offers auto-positioning to further expedite imaging exams. This suite uses the wireless, cassette-size CARESTREAM DRX-1 detector for the ultimate in positioning flexibility.
Since the installation, the organization has almost doubled its patient throughput. Off-site radiologists read images rapidly and their reports are entered into the HIS/RIS system. Physicians have images on their desktop even before the patient walks back to the exam room. “With our new DR and PACS systems, the results are delivered to physicians quickly so that patient treatment can begin immediately,” Gerards added.
Muscogee (Creek) Nation Brings Imaging In-House
The Muscogee (Creek) Nation Division of Health ordered a DRX-Evolution System and CARESTREAM DRYVIEW 5800 Laser Imager. The DRX-Evolution system will be installed in the Okmulgee Indian Health Center, one of four outpatient clinics serving the Muscogee Nation and the only one that had not previously offered in-house x-ray capabilities.
“We have a women’s clinic and pediatric clinic there, and both generate high volumes of radiology referrals,” notes Radiology Director Pete Tiger, RT(R). In the past, patients would have to leave the clinic to have a radiology procedure performed at nearby Okmulgee Memorial Hospital and then carry their film images back to the clinic to see a primary care physician. “Now the patient doesn’t have to leave our clinic. We expect the DRX-Evolution system to save 60 to 90 minutes for each patient,” he said.
Additionally, the fully featured in-house DR imaging accelerates the receipt of radiology reports from off-site radiologists. Tiger says the clinic expects to have completed reports within one to two hours, accelerating patient diagnosis and treatment.
The clinical staff at Muscogee Nation Division of Health chose the DRX-Evolution system largely because of the system’s wall Bucky and flexible DRX-1 detector. “It will help us with ill or injured patients who are difficult to image, such as those patients in wheelchairs and those whose injuries prevent them from lying flat,” Tiger notes. “With the DRX-Evolution room, we can move the detector and not the patient.”
The CARESTREAM PACS offers a host of efficiency-enhancing features including: reading from a global patient worklist; an innovative PowerViewer that can enhance both the diagnostic quality and speed of interpretations of volumetric imaging studies; centralized storage and viewing of non-DICOM and DICOM data; and the ability to synchronize patient metadata across multiple PACS platforms.
The DRX-Evolution is a modular digital radiography system that can simplify and speed the capture of even the most challenging views. After selecting a patient from the worklist, an auto-positioning feature equips the system to position itself for the examination. The thin, lightweight DRX-1 detector delivers enhanced patient comfort that is especially important for trauma cases. It can be removed from the Bucky tray for tabletop views and the system’s wall stand can be
positioned by the table for cross-table views. Images are communicated over a secure wireless network and appear on the console.
More information on digital medical imaging and healthcare IT solutions from Carestream Health that can help lower costs and improve patient care can be found at www.carestreamhealth.com.
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About Carestream Health, Inc.
Carestream Health, Inc., is a worldwide provider of dental and medical imaging systems and healthcare IT solutions; molecular imaging systems for the life science research and drug discovery/development market segments; and x-ray film and digital x-ray products for the non-destructive testing market. For more information about the company’s broad portfolio of products, solutions and services, please contact your Carestream Health representative or visit www.carestreamhealth.com.
CARESTREAM is a trademark of Carestream Health, Inc.
2010