What's New

Technology has advanced in leaps and bounds over the last decade. As with any technological field, the medical community should expect to see advancements in teleradiology services in the near future.

When it comes to teleradiology interpretation, accuracy is the key to optimal patient care.

One of the key teleradiology issues today is what might be called the Price Wars, but is it really all about price?

When it comes to choosing teleradiology service providers, it isn't a one-size-fits-all type of thing.

What are the qualifications required to become a radiologist?

If you are seeking a career in the medical field and have a predisposition towards technical work, training to be a radiologist may be the ideal career path for you.

eRad, Inc. understands that modern radiology is in a constant state of flux, continually changing as new technology comes on the scene and that radiology professionals want a system that is flexible enough to grow with the times and adapt to suit the latest innovations.

While health care professionals should be ever mindful of the need for good communication, when it comes to making patients aware of the risks and benefits of computer tomography, that communication is even more challenging and just as important when dealing with pediatric patients.

Since coming on the scene back in the 1950s, ICM or organic radiographic iodinated contrast media have proven to be right up at the top of prescribed drugs, as far as how often they are prescribed.

Teleradiology and teleradiology software are a giant leap forward for modern medicine as physicians are able to see the results of tests without being in the same location as the patient.

Teleradiology has meant significant improvements for health care to people in all walks of life and all around the planet; but what does the future hold in store for this technologically advanced field?

Teleradiology has made it possible for many patients to get better and more specialized medical care, even if they are in remote areas or halfway around the world from the physician best suited to their specific case.

Have you heard of molecular imaging but are not quite sure what it's all about? Or has your doctor ordered molecular imaging for you?

If your answer is yes, read on for some pertinent information about this diagnostic procedure and how it is being used.

Teleradiology consultants provided much needed relief when they started in the 1980s, allowing in-house radiologists to have regular shifts by covering for them at night and on weekends. However, in the past few decades, there has been growing concern that teleradiologists are directly competing with radiologists for business. Can the two coexist? Is the industry evolving to fit both, or will the rivalry only escalate?

One of the biggest concerns that the public has with diagnostic radiology is the radiation that an often already sick body is subjected to. But researchers at Johns Hopkins believe they have developed a new way to scan children, and soon adults, without this danger.

Doctors often wish they could do a quick “Google” to figure out what ails their patient--and John Hopkins Pediatrics is hoping to get them one step closer. The hospital is compiling a database of various pediatric neuroradiology images, which will allow medical professionals to compare their findings against patients with confirmed diagnoses.

Whole body imaging seems likes a complex technology that would require a long period of time to take “pictures” of internal organs from head to toe. A MRI of a body part can, indeed, take up to 1 hour. However, the reality is that if you have traveled internationally over the last 5 years by airplane, you’ve already experienced a full body scan.  The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) began to implement whole body scanners in U.S. airports in 2008 to detect both metallic and non-metallic threats to air travel.

The President’s budget proposal, released last week, cuts cost for health care. In particular, the processes for obtaining diagnostic images are coming under governmental fire for patients covered through Medicare. But the question arises, will that really save costs? Or is it just pushing around an inevitable medical bill, while causing suffering to those most in need?

Dr. House in the medical drama “House M.D.” sometimes ruminates over medical mysteries or rants wildly, while reviewing his patients’x-rays or other images on an x-ray view box. The bright view box contrasting dark film looks dramatic in the TV show, but it has become an ancient relic in real clinics. Instead of standing before the x-ray view box, doctors scroll and click through images on the computer screen.

It’s one of the most uncomfortable times for a musculoskeletal radiologist - as diagnostic professionals, that’s saying a lot - but when a patient is physically too large to fit an imaging machine, there’s no choice but to refer them somewhere with special equipment. As the number of bariatric patients grow, this situation is becoming all too common, and hospitals are beginning to respond by making plus sized accommodations available.

When is the right time to recommend a diagnostic imaging test? It can often be argued that procedures such as CT scans are invaluable to determining a patient’s malady. However, it can be equally beneficial to both your clients and your practice to take a step back and reevaluate the situation. Imaging tests such as CT scans, MRIs, and even mammograms top the list of Change Healthcare’s 8 Health Procedures with the Biggest Variance in Price list.

A mere science fiction ruse for many adults who were teens in the 70’s, telemedicine advancements now allow the inevitable long-distance health care solution to work in syncopation with technology to create an environment where patients receive much quicker services.  As newer innovations in teleradiology are unveiled, however, health professionals and patients wonder whether the ‘human factor’ will fly out the window with yesterday’s useless gadgetry.
If you’re on the fence about telemedicine today, let’s explore both the adversities behind trusting robotics, and why keeping more personable heath care solutions ‘as is’ could still benefit telemedicine.

As the medical field rapidly works to adapt the many changes that lie ahead for it, many hard working and detail oriented professionals looking for employment are finding that 2014 is proving to be a great year for finding new and fulfilling jobs in medical fields old, new or rapidly expanding.

While society often awaits the next big thing in tech gadgetry, health professionals sit quietly in their offices as scientific, and highly technical, advances in imagery slowly hit stride.  With teleradiology, the waiting game for huge improvements may finally be over.

More measurable today than with innovations of old, teleradiology continuously progresses inpatient treatment through the hands of radiologists that constanly strive to deliver quality healthcare from afar, thanks to intranets and image databases.  We look into the quantifiable results-based developments that teleradiology has brought to medical care.

By: Allen Rothpearl, MD

Allen Rothpearl, MD (Complete Radiology Reading Services)

Teleradiology has been part of my professional life for more than 10 years. As a board certified radiologist since 1993, and owner and operator of my own teleradiology practice and an imaging facility, I have been using teleradiology in my practice since 1998. Over the years, I have also designed and developed ways to improve teleradiology from software and operational perspectives.

In January when the disastrous earthquake in Haiti struck, I felt it was a good opportunity to apply my teleradiology experience. I couldn't leave my radiology practice and go to Haiti, so I started searching for another way help.