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Presbyterian Winnsboro Adds PACS
Presbyterian Hospital of Winnsboro's new picture archiving and communication system (PACS) allows many images from our radiology department to be captured, transmitted and stored throughout the network.
Imaging services available at Presbyterian Hospital of Winnsboro include:
• Computed tomography (CT) scans
• Computed axial tomography (CAT) scans
• Cystograms
• Diagnostic imaging
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans
• Mammograms
• Ultrasounds
'Images on the PACS system are stored indefinitely,' says Renae Thomas, CFO at Presbyterian Hospital of Winnsboro, 'allowing patients to request access to their images whenever they need them for future physician visits or referrals to specialists.'
The new PACS - which Presbyterian Hospital of Winnsboro invested more than $750,000 into this past year - is a system that obtains, stores, delivers, retrieves and displays digital images over a computer software network.
'The PACS computer system allows us to move information through a secure and confidential server,' says Thomas. 'Whether this information is accessed by the physicians at the hospital or from the comfort of their own home computers, PACS allows clear, precise images - such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) scans - to be easily accessible usually within five minutes after the images are captured.'
The Benefits of PACS
PACS technology benefits patients and staff members at Presbyterian Hospital of Winnsboro. For medical staff physicians, it provides higher-quality images that are usually more convenient to use and easier to share with referring physicians.
For patients, the benefits include:
• Physicians on the medical staff can view images almost immediately, so patients don't have to wait for films to be developed. It can be helpful in emergency situations and can reduce length of appointments.
• Images don't have to be repeated as often because they are available quickly for viewing and physicians can shift, lighten and darken them to improve their clarity instead
of taking a completely new scan or X-ray.
'PACS improves the physician's ability to make a more confident diagnosis while providing efficient care for our patients,' says Thomas. 'Fortunately, our physicians have access to the images from any computer terminal located throughout Presbyterian Hospital of Winnsboro, 24 hours a day, seven days a week through our hospital's physician
Web site, making it possible for patients to get their results faster.'
For more information about the radiology services offered at Presbyterian Hospital of Winnsboro, call 1-800-4-Presby (1-800-477-3729). (Summer 2008)
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