Transferring health data on CD saves money

BOSTON, April 19 (UPI) -- Uploading patient's diagnostic medical images to a CD when they are transferred between hospitals could reduce imaging by 17 percent, U.S. researchers say.

Lead researcher Dr. Aaron Sodickson, interim director of emergency radiology at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, says each year more than 2 million critically ill patients are transferred from one hospital emergency department to another for appropriate care.

By transferring diagnostic medical images to a CD-ROM, hospitals may be able to significantly reduce unnecessary medical imaging tests, which expose some patients to radiation, Sodickson says.

"Because there is no central repository for medical images or a large-scale system to transfer images electronically between hospitals, a CD with diagnostic imaging is among the most critical components in the hand-off of clinical information for patients transferred between hospitals," Sodickson says in a statement.

If CD images are imported into a hospital's picture archiving and communication system, the images can be efficiently reviewed by multiple members of the healthcare staff -- even if they are in different locations, Sodickson says.

"We know that a substantial portion of imaging performed on emergency department transfer patients is repeated at the receiving institution, which drives up healthcare costs, delays patient care and often exposes patients to additional ionizing radiation and intravenous contrast material," Sodickson says.

The findings is scheduled to be published in the July issue of Radiology.