Efficient, Integrated Image Management for Rehabilitation Organizations

Subsequent to surgical procedures as well as severe acute and chronic cases, rehabilitation, in many countries, has its established position in the patient care chain. When patients are admitted to one of these centers, the required medical diagnostics are subsidized for most patients. Patients, therefore bring with them, from their referrers - typically hospitals or practices of specialized physicians - a large volume of image material and physicians´ reports of various types. Usually this material is supplemented by images and evaluations generated in the rehabilitation organization. This information is stored digitally. Thus, it needs to be processed, displayed, and stored in an information system, too, in order to allow for efficient processes.

Custom Configuration, easy and fast

For the administration of the patient data, scheduling, etc., dedicated Hospital Information Systems (HIS) are available. For the imaging and reporting data, the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) provides an IT solution. Today, a HIS is a must for rehabilitation organizations; a PACS is an option. Frequently, organizations shrink from making significant investments in the area of image data management.

With its solution JiveX Reha, VISUS offers a system which has been optimized for the special requirements in rehabilitation organizations. It includes a selection of modules and functionalities required, and therefore is not overengineered. The system is simple to install, quick to learn, and easy to handle. In addition, it does not require any significant administration effort. The PACS can be operated on standard hardware, which makes special investments unnecessary. As an alternative option, the system can be operated as so-called VM application on virtual machines. This further reduces investment because no separate computer is required
Systemavailability of the system is ensured by VISUS through a remote service. As an option, a telephone hotline is provided to support users having questions or encountering problems.



As another option, VISUS will operate the PACS for its customers. The JiveX Application Service for PACS (ASP) combines hardware and software offerings with dedicated services as well as flexible payment schemes. The organization can lease the solution at fixed monthly rates, or decide in favor of a pay-per-use model, depending on the agreed services as well as availability and performance guarantees. Either way, the solution ensures cost-effective operation without any investments or capitcal commitment. Costs can be planned long-term because there are no additional expenditures for migration, administration, or maintenance, will be incurred.

Integration of HIS and Telemedicine

In a rehabilitation organization, too, the HIS is the patient leading system. Its tasks range from comprehensive patient data management to the complete administration and the medical departments. In order to safeguard seamless processes, the PACS is integrated deeply into the HIS. This is the only way to enable quick access to image and reporting data in the patient context. Image distribution within the organization is carried out based on web technology.

When the patient is admitted to a rehabilitation organization, he/she brings with him/her a multitude of images which need to be integrated into the PACS. JiveX Reha safeguards the quality assured import of third-party image data. In this context it is irrelevant on what medium (CD, DVD, X-ray film) the data is delivered. The PACS from VISUS is capable of processing not only X-ray images but also sonographies, ECG waveforms, photographs, and video sequences as well as PDF files. This provides physicians with all image data required for rehabilitation and controlling of therapy results.

The PACS, however, does not stop at the walls of an organization. Instead, the system offers the option of communicating with external partners such as referrers or co-operating hospitals. Depending on the patient groups, more often than not rehabilitation organizations find themselves in a position where they need to refer, in an emergency situation, patients for acute care to a partner hospital. In such cases, it is helpful to transmit any emergency diagnostics which may have been carried out to the receiving hospital already before the arrival of the patient. This is a classic area of application for telemedicine. Studies can be exchanged in standardized DICOM format via secure data connections or via DICOM E-Mail. Both approaches provide a quick and secure transfer of data. These methods are used in the subsequent treatment and consultations, and help to further optimize patient care.

Flexible Archiving, fast Access

Storage of the image data is carried out in a flexible manner, in accordance with the requirements of the individual customer and in DICOM format. The data can be stored online, in a storage area network (SAN), via network-attached storage (NAS), or in a directly attached hard disk system (RAID, DAS). Offline storage is done on DVDs, BluRay discs, or magnetic tapes which are handled and managed manually or by a robot. Before archiving of image data, a feedback is sent to the leading information system. Thanks to the consistency with the order confirmation from the leading information system, process quality is ensured at all levels of the image cycle.

A further option for long-term archiving is JiveX Storage Service for PACS (SSP). This service enables the customer to store data in an external archive operated by a service provider. This type of data storage enables cost-optimized operation for the user. With full orientation of fees towards use, the customer is not required to make investments and tie up capital. Cost can be planned because no additional expenditures for migration, administration, or maintenance, will be incurred.