First transition from IMPAX in country achieves major milestones in only two weeks
- Enterprise Imaging for Radiology is a single, completely unified imaging platform providing PACS, reporting, zero footprint viewer, advanced image processing and integration of clinical information.
- Agreement includes the first Agfa HealthCare managed services contract in the country.
- A long-time Agfa HealthCare customer, the Royal Commission Medical Center in Yanbu has used IMPAX since 2007.
Agfa HealthCare has announced that the Royal Commission Medical Center (RCMC) in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia is the first healthcare institution in Saudi Arabia to upgrade from IMPAX to the Enterprise Imaging platform. After a smooth transition, the new solution is now up and running. A go-live event organized by Agfa HealthCare's local distributor, Gulf Medical, on 28 December 2015 was attended by representatives of the hospital and Agfa HealthCare.
A single, unified platform
The RCMC provides residents of Yanbu, a major port on the Red Sea, with a comprehensive range of high-quality healthcare services. These include preventative, emergency and curative care. The hospital is certified by Joint Commission International (JCI) and the Saudi Central Board for Accreditation of Healthcare Institutions (CBAHI), and is dedicated to providing a high standard of patient care in a safe environment.
In 2007, the hospital implemented Agfa HealthCare's IMPAX radiology information system/picture archiving and communication system (RIS/PACS). Highly satisfied with the solution, in 2011 they upgraded to the next IMPAX version. In 2015, the hospital took the next step forward, by implementing the Enterprise Imaging platform. The agreement includes an Agfa HealthCare managed services contract, through distributor Gulf Medical.
Agfa HealthCare's Enterprise Imaging for Radiology platform offers a care-centric workflow that is standards-based, improves interoperability and enables a comprehensive patient health record across departments within a single facility or between multiple facilities. This completely unified imaging solution includes image management, acquisition and diagnostic desktop, reporting, advanced image processing and integration of clinical information, all in one sophisticated platform. It offers clinicians a single point of access to patient information from different sources, allowing them to quickly access a patient's complete file, generate a report and distribute it, all during one session, even from a remote location.
Innovative and mobile tools
The RCMC solution also includes the XERO zero-download viewer, which reduces IT complexity while facilitating clinical collaboration and mobility. The viewer provides secure access to DICOM and non-DICOM imaging data from different departments and multiple sources, in one view, to anyone inside and outside of the hospital who needs it. By speeding up and enhancing image retrieval by care providers, it increases productivity as well as patient and staff satisfaction, while clinical and specialty measurement tools enhance the clinical depth.
Enterprise Imaging mobile tools let physicians check on report status from any location, whether at home, doing rounds, or visiting another facility. With the web signoff list they can verify and signoff that the report is correct or send it back to the transcriptionist for corrections if necessary.
And the Enterprise Imaging collaborator allows collaboration between users simply using a web browser, whether it be on a workstation or a mobile digital device such as an Apple iPad. Users can take control, see the mouse pointer, add markups and any other manipulations in real time, with a similar look and feel to the main application.
RCMC PACS Administrator Mr. Abdulrahman Abu Sallamah comments, "I am confident that the new Enterprise Imaging system will facilitate our work and provide innovative functionalities to all users."
Consultant Radiologist Dr. Mosleh Al-Raddadi agrees: "I am pleased to see this project being implemented. I have appreciated the collaboration with Agfa HealthCare over the past 9 years, and I am sure that the new system will allow the radiologists to perform our work from anywhere."
Up and running quickly
The implementation of the Enterprise Imaging platform went smoothly, with significant milestones achieved in only two weeks. These included hardware installation, RIS migration, end-user training, workflow enhancement, HIS integration kick-off, clinician training, and preparation of the PACS migration.
"This excellent result was in large part thanks to the dedicated efforts of both the RCMC team and the Agfa HealthCare/Gulf Medical team," says Dr. Rafat Edrees, Director of the health services program.
"We are very pleased to be accompanying RCMC in the next step in its journey towards continuously enhancing the quality of patient care and meeting its objectives," concludes Jean-Pierre Slabbaert, IT Director, Export Countries of Agfa HealthCare. "Strong relationships like the one we share with RCMC demonstrate our dedication to support healthcare players in this key region."
