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Diagnostic imaging
Joseph Brant Memorial, St. Mary’s
General join SWODIN
BURLINGTON, Ont. – Joseph Brant
Memorial Hospital and St. Mary’s General Hospital have connected to the
Southwestern Ontario Diagnostic Imaging Network (SWODIN), the largest
diagnostic imaging repository (DI-r) in use in Ontario to date.
The network is one of four across the province that enables
participating healthcare facilities to electronically store, retrieve
and share patient diagnostic health information such as X-rays,
ultrasounds, CT scans and MRIs. Annually, SWODIN will manage more than 3
million exams.
Mohawk Shared Services Inc. (MSS) has established a Diagnostic Imaging
Division and will work with the participating organizations in Hamilton
Niagara Haldimand Brant (HNHB) & Waterloo Wellington (WW) Local Health
Integration Networks to connect them to the SWODIN DI-r over the next 18
months.
“Transitioning from seeing only our Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital
digital radiology images to seeing all of the hospitals’ images in
real-time within the LHINs has gone very smoothly,” said James Crumb,
Director Clinical Support Services at JBMH.
“The JBMH Radiology and IT Department’s skill and hard work has really
paid off and led to the success of the project which had no issues at go
live,” he added. “The data repository in the longer term will lead to
improved real time physician collaboration, improved quality of care
through the need for fewer repeat images and improved patient safety.
The model and its success is one that really should be shared with other
healthcare sectors.”
Both institutions join a growing list of healthcare facilities in the
HNHB LHIN to connect to SWODIN. To date, seven healthcare systems
representing 27 hospitals are sharing their diagnostic images via the
repository.
“Burlington and Kitchener residents will greatly benefit from having
their diagnostic images available digitally because it will help speed
up diagnosis and treatment,” said Richard Alvarez, President and CEO,
Canada Health Infoway. “Across Canada, hundreds of millions of dollars
in savings and efficiencies are being realized every year thanks to the
investments made to digitize images such as x-rays, CT scans and
ultrasound.”
Canada Health Infoway (Infoway) has provided $35 million and eHealth
Ontario has provided $26 million in funding to support the transfer of
diagnostic images and reports between the healthcare organizations in
Southwestern Ontario. The project is part of the Ontario government’s
ehealth agenda and Infoway’s vision for a pan-Canadian electronic health
record system.
“We are proud to provide the network and be a funding partner of an
initiative which advances healthcare delivery and benefits Ontarians,”
said Greg Reed, President and CEO, eHealth Ontario. “This project
illustrates how collaboration within the healthcare system can improve
patient care.”
Canada Health Infoway is an independent, not-for-profit organization
funded by the federal government. Infoway jointly invests with every
province and territory to accelerate the development and adoption of
electronic health record projects in Canada.
Benefits of the repository include:
Secure, quick and easy access by clinicians and radiologists to
patients’ diagnostic imaging records, allowing them to diagnose
regardless of the location of the patient and where the images were
taken
Enhanced clinician collaboration and knowledge transfer, resulting in
better treatment, fewer retakes and a reduction in radiation exposure
Quicker treatment for patients thanks to the ability of specialists at
different facilities to now share images faster and discuss and develop
treatment plans concurrently
Additional functionality including superior image quality and the
ability to zoom in and out on an image.
Posted December 16, 2010
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