An article on enterprise imaging and image sharing that is worth a read.

Some thoughts…

• Informatics at the time of capture is (very) important, but this doesn’t mean we are back to typing data in–most of what is needed can easily be discovered on demand by a Web service
• VNA’s are still being considered a component distinct from PACS and the EMR–they should be considered an EMR component, enabling the management of imaging records within the EMR
• You can question the ROI of including images in the EMR or assess the clinical relevance (both noble goals), but one thing I have learned: EMR users want them there (and you should want to make them happy)
• People still think we need to move a full copy of the DICOM images around to share; when I share a video on YouTube, I share just a link. The state-of-the-art of medical imaging is at the same level. Only make a copy of the full data if you need to incorporate it into your systems as a new record.
• Something I have recently observed: regardless of whether including images in an EMR is an optional menu or required core item in MU, if the people interpreting these rules believe they need image access display for referring physicians inside and outside the hospital, they are going expect to be able to put them there.