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Digital Mammography Integrated with PACS:








Digital Mammography Integrated with PACS: 
A new workflow paradigm

Background
As breast centers transition to full-field digital mammography, the need to address information storage and PACS requirements becomes apparent. Early adopters of FFDM typically created a separate mammography mini-PACS data island, resulting in added costs and space requirements, as well as inefficiencies that are a function of multiple data sources and technologies.

Since then, many centers have implemented FFDM without connecting to a PACS or mini-PACS, choosing rather to archive exams on removable media. This results in costly inefficiencies, with exams unavailable electronically to the referring doctors, thus requiring significant quantities of film printing to satisfy remote access.

Now, an increasing number of breast centers are choosing instead to integrate full-field digital mammography with their preexisting PACS archive, network, and Web distribution system, as a means of enhancing radiologist efficiency and improving administrative efficiency.

Benefits of FFDM integration with PACS

Integration of FFDM with an existing generalized PACS results in the following immediate benefits:
•   Ease of access to all radiologic studies off one database
•   Leveraging of the existing PACS server, Web server, network, and archive, thereby saving costs
•   Ease of comparing exams from multiple modalities off the one database, including digital mammography, MRI, ultrasound, and PET.
•   Leveraging of current Web access to all radiology exams and results by referring  physicians
•   Access to all radiologic studies via a single user interface already familiar to all referring physicians and radiologists

Radiologist workflow transition: 
From six systems to one


 
Conventional Six-System Workflow
  1. Mammoviewer
2. Dictation
3. Paper Requisition		 4. Outboard Mammo QA
5. FFDM Workstation
6. PACS Workstation		  
 
DR Systems FFDM Radiology Workflow


 
Single Workstation Information System Solution

 

Conclusion

Full integration of digital mammography with PACS, including primary interpretation, structured template reporting, mammographic QA, RIS, and digital billing feed out from PACS, will lead to significant benefits and efficiencies for the radiologist, the referring physician, the administrative staff, and the enterprise. In addition, an integrated approach allows the radiologist and referring physicians to view any radiologic examination and report off of one database and with one user interface, to the great benefit of both the patient and the enterprise.










 




Features

  • Single Workstation for Digital and CR Mammo, MRI, and US
  • Automated Reporting, Distribution and Archive
  • Faster, More Accurate Diagnosis
  • Rapidly Detect Changes Over Time

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