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Biomedical subjects

R Hindel

Publications and source records attributed to R Hindel.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

Tools for medical informatics.

Informatics uses words, terms and expressions of various scientific disciplines. The proposed tools, hermeneutics and phenomenology, generate a basis for quality control by establishing the authenticity and validity of such expressions. Without such tools there is the danger that poorly defined expressions obscure true meaning and prevent progress. The method is demonstrated on "objects" as used in "object oriented programming" and on "open systems" as used in the International Standards Organization model for "open system interconnection."

Medical Informatics

The impact of image storage organization on the effectiveness of PACS.

Picture archiving communication system (PACS) requires efficient handling of large amounts of data. Mass storage systems are cost effective but slow, while very fast systems, like frame buffers and parallel transfer disks, are expensive. The image traffic can be divided into inbound traffic generated by diagnostic modalities and outbound traffic into workstations. At the contact points with medical professionals, the responses must be fast. Archiving, on the other hand, can employ slower but less expensive storage systems, provided that the primary activities are not impeded. This article illustrates a segmentation architecture meeting these requirements based on a clearly defined PACS concept.

Computer Storage Devices

Cost-effectiveness prospects of picture archiving and communication systems.

PAC (picture archiving and communication) systems are widely discussed and promoted as the organizational solution to digital image management in a radiology department. For approximately two decades digital imaging has increasingly been used for such diagnostic modalities as CT, DSA, MRI, DR (Digital Radiography) and others. PACS are seen as a step toward high technology integration and more efficient management. Although the acquisition of such technology is investment intensive, there are well-founded projections that prolonged operation will prove cost justified. Such justification can only partly be derived from cost reduction through PAC with respect to present department management--the major justification is preparation for future economic pressures which could make survival of a department without modern technology difficult. Especially in the United States the political climate favors 'competitive medicine' and reduced government support. Seen in this context PACS promises to speed the transition of Health Care Services into a business with tight resource management, cost accounting and marketing. The following paper analyzes cost and revenue in a typical larger Radiology Department, projects various scenarios of cost reduction by means of digital technology and concludes with cautious optimism that the investment expenses for a PACS will be justified in the near future by prudent utilization of high technology.

Archives

Review of optical storage technology for archiving digital medical images.

Digital optical recording (DOR) is a data-acquisition and storage technology important to the development of picture archiving and communication systems (PACS). DOR offers attractive advantages in high-density, low-cost archival storage of images and other information. At present, film is used as the storage medium for archiving images generated by both conventional equipment and digital technologies such as computed tomography, digital subtraction angiography, magnetic resonance imaging, and nuclear medicine. The basic methods of DOR data storage are discussed together with requirements essential for making DOR an acceptable alternative to film archiving. The impact of DOR technology on the operation of an imaging department is projected.

Costs and Cost Analysis

PACS cost justification: an industry perspective.

Picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) are seen as an expensive application of computer technology in diagnostic medicine. They are, admittedly, an important expansion of medical informatics into the management of images, but the cost of such systems is not easily justified. Analysis of published data shows that high technology equipment has not significantly contributed to the alarming increase in health care cost in the United States. Furthermore, within the new reimbursement scheme for Medicare procedures radiology costs amount only to less than 5%. The paper gives an analysis of where high cost in PACS is concentrated and suggests ways of justifying the expense of a PAC system.

Cost-Benefit Analysis