If your facilities are using POC US I can virtually guarantee that integrating its images and information into your PACS and EMR is a significant problem. The integration for these devices has not existed as it does for traditional imaging devices like modality worklist, etc., until now. IHE recently released is technical framework for Encounter Based Imaging Workflow (EBIW) which sets the standards for integrating POC US devices with our medical record systems.
EBIW does for POC US what Scheduled Workflow Profile (SWF) did for our other imaging systems: SWF is what allows our RIS to populate our scanners and PACS with patient names, MR numbers, etc. Prior to that we hand typed everything into the scanner.
IHE Radiology was tasked with developing similar standards for POC US and just released its solution titled Encounter Based Imaging Workflow (EBIW). EBIW will do for POC US units what SWF did for all our modalities in radiology - allow them to seamlessly communicate with the other systems around them.
Now, the challenge turns to us as the end users to begin requesting this functionality from the vendors. As we did many years ago, it all begins by including the request in our RFPs when purchasing new equipment or, if your system already owns one or more units, asking the vendor to support EBIW.
I posted an article on LinkedIn which includes suggested RFP language facilities can use as well as links to the technical framework. Click here to read the entire post, including draft RFP/RFI language. By the way, IHE is a volunteer organization which develops these profiles and makes them available for use by vendors free of charge.
On a related not, to keep abreast of these and other IHE Radiology activities you may want to submit a request to join the IHE Radiology LinkedIn group by entering IHE Radiology in the LinkedIn search box near the top of the page, clicking on IHE Radiology and submitting a request to join.
MBohl
Bohl Radiologic Technologist Scholarship Fund
Mercy College of Health Sciences, Des Moines, IA
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