Our consultants have authored or contributed to a number of published articles and eBooks on healthcare IT, medical imaging and other topics. A list of samples is below.

Presentations

Machine and Deep Learning in Medical Imaging

A talk by Don Dennison on Machine and Deep Learning, specifically as it relates to medical imaging (June 2016).

Download slides in PDF.

Providing a Complete and Longitudinal Imaging Record – Assessing Image Sharing Strategies

Presented at the ACR Imaging Informatics Summit in Oct-2014, this presentation explored methods of sharing across organizations and integrating imaging records within institutions, as well as options for bridging cloud-based image sharing networks. It included a primer on the new DICOMweb™ standards.

Web Technologies – The New Healthcare Standard

Note: Available to SIIM members; requires log-in.
Presented at the SIIM 2014 Annual Meeting in May-2014, this presentation, and those from the panel members, provides an in depth overview of the new DICOMweb™ and HL7 FHIR standards.

Articles and Whitepapers

PACS 2018: An Autopsy

Told from the year 2018, this article published in Journal of Digital Imaging, looks back at the market and technical forces that result in the deconstruction of PACS (and RIS) as we know it.

Image Sharing: Is it Missing From Your Enterprise Imaging Strategy?

Developing and Implementing an Image Sharing Strategy for a Complete EMR

Where to Build It

Published in Journal of Digital Imaging, this article compares the pros and cons of building a healthcare IT application in an Established Vendor, a Start-up or a Hospital Lab environment, examining aspects such as access to design input and validation to commercialization and transition to support.

Informatics Challenges – Lossy Compression in Medical Imaging

Published in Journal of Digital Imaging (June 2014), this paper looks at the implications on informatics and information management when applying lossy compression to medical images in DICOM. It also explores whether wavelet-based compression (e.g. JPEG2000) still provides the value that it once promised. A comparison of different approaches to preserve system and network resources is included.

Imaging informatics accelerates change-agent role in ACA transition

Interviewed. Published by DOTmed in Apr-2015.

SIIM Blog: Medical Imaging Market Trends and Managing Knowledge

• Part 1: What’s happening in Medical Imaging
• Part 2: Organizing Concepts to Focus Learning Efforts

SIIM Blog: The Power of Convergence of Health Information – How Hacking and Mash-Ups Will Save the World

A post on the SIIM blog about the new standard REST-based APIs (DICOMweb, HL7 FHIR) now available for imaging and clinical information interoperability.

RADBODYKB: Ontology-Based Web Service for Enhanced Search of Anatomic Location in Medical Image Data

Presented at SIIM 2014, this paper explores a method to use imaging information to discover and associate anatomy. I was a contributor. The primary author is Dr. Helen Chen.

REST Enabling the Report Template Library (requires purchase)

I contributed to this article published in Journal of Digital Imaging. The primary author is Brad Genereaux (@IntegratorBrad). His blog is here. The article examines the use of a REST API to discover, retrieve and use structured radiology report templates from an on-line report repository.

Articles in the Works (titles subject to change)

• Intrapreneurship — Innovating in Medium to Large sized Companies (5-part series)
• Dealing with Vendors …It doesn’t need to be painful

eBooks

The following eBooks are available to my clients. I also have accompanying presentation materials for use in workshops and educational seminars.

Separating PACS Servers from VNA …and then connecting them

26 Pages

Target Audience

• Staff involved in assessing PACS (Picture Archiving And Communication System) and/or VNA (Vendor Neutral Archive) solutions
• Staff involved in integrating, operating or managing PACS and VNA
• Anyone wanting to learn more about medical image interoperability

Objectives

• Understand how and why PACS servers and VNA differ
• Know what to look for in a PACS and VNA as it relates to an interoperable patient imaging record
• Learn how PACS and VNA architectures are likely to evolve

Table of Contents

• What is a VNA?
• What are the requirements of a VNA?
• Why do PACS servers often fail to perform well as VNA?
• What to look for in a PACS when connecting it to a VNA
• The Future

Integrating a Patient’s Imaging Record across Enterprises

28 Pages

Target Audience

• Staff involved in managing patient identity information within and across systems
• Anyone wanting to learn more about patient identity management, particularly within medical image record management

Objectives

• Understand how patient identities are defined and managed within IT systems
• Know how standards like HL7 and DICOM communicate patient identifying information
• Discover the real world clinical risks related to improper or incomplete patient identifier management
• Learn why having a strategy as to how patient identity will be managed across clinical, operational and imaging systems is important for patient safety (and when done properly, can be a strategic asset to the organization)

Table of Contents

• Patient Identifiers: The Basics
• The Importance of Patient Identity Management
• What is an MPI?
• Importing and Reconciling Patient Imaging Records
• Other Imaging Record Identifiers to Consider
• Special Considerations Regarding Reports
• Alternatives to Localizing or Cross-Indexing
• Consolidating and Exchanging Imaging Records when Merging Organizations
• Don’t Forget the User
• Evaluating the Ability of Systems to Manage Imaging Records with Different Patient Identifiers

 eBooks in the Works (titles subject to change)

• An Evaluation of Centralized vs. Federated architectures for image exchange and access
• Enterprise Viewers
• Image Sharing