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By Ed Simcox, Healthcare Practice Leader for Logicalis

Medical imaging is complex and largely unmanaged, representing a major hurdle for healthcare CIOs. When it comes to solving the challenge of helping their organizations fully leverage medical imaging to enhance patient care, CIOs often procrastinate because of seven key reasons:

  1. Complexity: Imaging is far more than pictures; there are a host of other image-producing service lines that raise the complexity bar in gathering, storing, securing and providing efficient access.
  1. Unique language: Even sophisticated healthcare IT organizations often find themselves lacking the right skills to develop and execute a pervasive imaging strategy.
  1. Strategy: Imaging is not a one-time project—it’s an enduring effort that will be part of the continuum of care on an everyday basis.
  1. Disparate storage: It’s crucial to consider how to effectively, efficiently and safely move images between your organization and external agencies.
  1. Security: Medical images and related data—sometimes acquired via smartphones and tablets—must be securely routed to the appropriate patient files.
  1. Mergers and Acquisitions: Most organizations are likely to grow organically and through mergers and acquisitions, which must be taken into account when planning an imaging strategy.
  1. Health Information Exchanges: You also need a strategy that incorporates workflows at the regional level where you exchange information.

With the tremendous numbers of clinical images captured by an array of disparate devices, solving these challenges won’t be easy. Turning to outside experts for help is not only prudent, but could also save millions of dollars by helping you avoid costly mistakes.

To learn more about solving the challenges of medical images, check out two presentations by

Logicalis’ Kim Garriott:

  • “Optimizing your EHR with an Enterprise Imaging Strategy” at the Becker’s Hospital Review Annual CIO/HIT + Revenue Cycle Summit, July 21 in Chicago: http://ow.ly/OXBh9.
  • “Examine Effective Governance of Connected Health and Develop an Enterprise Imaging Strategy” at mHealth + Telehealth World, July 22 in Boston: mHealth + Telehealth World 2015.

And for more information on the medical imaging solutions that Logicalis offers, visit http://www.us.logicalis.com/healthcareit/