A radiology information system (RIS) has the capacity to change the way a radiologist’s office conducts business and helps patients. Not every radiologic professional is convinced that computerized RIS systems are an improvement – mostly due to privacy concerns – but when properly implemented, these systems can save money, increase efficiency, catch more errors than paper systems, and improve patient outcomes.
Increase Efficiency
A good RIS in conjunction with an electronic health records (EHR) system can integrate the visual medical data unique to radiologists’ offices with a patient’s complete medical records. Your staff will no longer be searching piles of paper for a sticky note, and your patient’s other doctors and specialists can have access to visual imagery at the touch of a button. Your staff will be able to streamline operations and move the focus from paper to people.
Reduce Error
People make mistakes. When all a patient’s information is in a physical chart, it’s easy to slip a piece of paper into the wrong file or miss filling out a critical field on the page. A computerized system can offer prompts—“Please fill out Patient Name before continuing”—or keep the same information in multiple places to increase redundancy and thus decrease error probabilities.
Improve Patient Outcomes
When a doctor can see all a patient’s pertinent data side by side, he or she may notice trends or catch problems that might otherwise have gone unrecognized. RIS systems also improve response time and the sharing of important test results, allowing physicians to create a nimble and adaptable system that improves the speed and accuracy of patient care.
Save Money
By increasing efficiency, reducing error, and improving patient outcomes, RIS systems can save your office money. Those savings can increase profit margins and even generate the capital to buy new and better radiologic equipment. Move the focus from paper to people and improve your practice with a well-implemented RIS.
Key Takeaways
- RIS systems can increase an office’s overall efficiency, reducing person-hours required for filing and storage.
- A radiology office can reduce the number of errors that occur thanks to human fault or oversight by building in redundancy measures that catch problems before they happen.
- RIS systems help improve measures of patient health and satisfaction. They offer quantifiable data at the touch of a button; provide key performance indicators in pay-for-performance situations; and help doctors help patients quickly and effectively.
- By decreasing clerical work hours; reducing error situations and the malpractice lawsuits that can follow; and improving patient outcomes, an RIS system can save your office money.
- Privacy concerns and discomfort with computer technology are a sticking point for some radiologic professionals, but password protection and proper training can overcome these obstacles.
