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Thursday, February 26, 2004 – Dawning of a New Era at MeritCare - Radiology Services Now Operating In a Virtually Filmless Environment, Utilizing New State-Of-The-Art "PACS" System
Monday, March 1, will signify the dawning of a new era in Radiology Services at MeritCare. It's the first official day that the group will be using it's new picture archival communications system, or PACS. The system will give healthcare providers fast and easy access to radiology images and reports from a variety of MeritCare locations in Fargo (MeritCare Southpointe, the downtown campus – including the Emergency Center and MeritCare South University). MeritCare radiologists also have the ability to view the same information from home anytime of the day or night.
Another benefit is that multiple users can simultaneously view information. This means that a radiologist working at MeritCare's downtown campus can consult with one of MeritCare's orthopedic surgeons at MeritCare Southpointe from their respective offices and both are viewing the exact same information. Viewing is done in real time because staff won't have to wait to get hard copies of the films.
The system is akin to a person taking digital photos and sending them to friends, but on a much larger scale. With the exception of mammograms, PACS makes MeritCare Radiology Services a filmless imaging environment, meaning that hard-copy films for the following tests no longer need to be made:
X-rays
Ultrasounds
CT scans – A CT scan is a special type of X-ray that can produce detailed pictures of structures inside the body.
MRI – MRIs use a magnetic field and pulses of radio wave energy to provide pictures of organs and structures inside the body.
Nuclear medicine – An example of a nuclear medicine test is a cardiac stress test. Dye is injected into the body and images are taken while the patient is resting and while exercising.
Interventional radiology
Additional information:
It's expected that PACS will be rolled out to most MeritCare locations in North Dakota and Minnesota within two years.
While it used to cost $5 per film, (a typical CT scan would include five different "shots," which costs $25), the new cost will be less than $1 per CD; each CD can hold up to 10 scans.
Mammograms will still be film based because the equipment used to view the scans is different.