Network Unveiled for Cloud-Based Medical Imaging and Report Exchange

Nuance Communications, Inc. (Burlington, MA, USA)’s PowerShare Network promotes informed and connected physicians and patients who can instantly view, share and collaborate while addressing patients’ healthcare needs. “Organizations are being tasked to communicate efficiently both in and out of their networks to provide clinical insight to physicians beyond one person or office to a much broader team involved in the continuum of care,” said Keith Dreyer, DO, PhD, FACR, vice chairman of radiology at Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston, MA, USA), and chair of the American College of Radiology (ACR) IT and Informatics Committee. “Nuance PowerShare Network addresses the information sharing challenge physicians face today with a network that supports things we’ve dreamed of doing for years,” he added.

Nuance PowerShare Network is already used by more than 1,900 provider organizations for sharing images via the cloud using open standards. Made possible through the acquisition of Accelarad, this medical imaging exchange eliminates the expensive and insecure process of managing images on CDs and removes silos of information in healthcare that inhibit providers from optimizing the efficiency and quality of care they provide. Anyone can join the network regardless of information technology (IT) systems in place to instantly view and manage images needed to consult, diagnose or treat patients, enabling clinicians to more seamlessly evaluate and deliver care for patients who transition between facilities or care settings.

Nuance is already used by more than 500,000 clinicians and is a critical component within the radiology workflow and a trusted partner for 1,600+ provider organizations that rely on Nuance PowerScribe for radiology reporting and communications. Healthcare organizations that use Nuance PowerScribe, a group that produces more that 50% of all radiology reports in the United States, can immediately utilize their existing investment and begin sharing radiology reports along with images, such as X-rays, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, computed tomography (CT) scans, electrocardiograms (ECG), wound care images, dermatology images or any other type of image. This simplifies secure health information exchange between multiple providers, patients and disparate systems without costly and time-consuming interfaces, CD production or the need to install additional third-party systems.

“The challenge of sharing images with interpretive reports is something we’ve heard about consistently from our customers and EHR [electronic health record] partners, and we know Nuance PowerShare Network will overcome this major obstacle, helping physicians treat patients more efficiently and effectively,” said Peter Durlach, senior vice president of marketing and strategy, Nuance Communications. “This nationwide network, one that is fully integrated into the EHR workflow and already connected to approximately half of all clinicians producing diagnostic imaging information, is a ground breaking solution that delivers immediate benefits at an unprecedented scale to our healthcare system.”

“Integrated image and report sharing helps us deliver quality care and drive down costs especially when patients transfer from one facility to another. Whether at their desktop or on their mobile device, our physicians can see the study that was done along with the interpretive report, which provides the information they need to treat the patient and avoid duplicate testing,” said Deborah Gash, vice president and CIO, Saint. Luke’s Health System (Kansas City, MO, USA). “By integrating this with our EHR, PowerShare will enable physicians to manage inbound imaging through one point of access and login. Physicians in our 11 hospitals and 100-mile radius referral network see this cutting-edge technology as a way to deliver the highest level of patient care,” she added.

Nuance Communications, Inc. is a provider of voice and language solutions for businesses and consumers worldwide.

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