Customer Stories

West Coast Radiology

“We are now fully integrated, filmless and paperless. Every single person in our organization has experienced increased efficiency, from the scheduler and transcriptionist to tech and radiologist. Plus, we are starting to really see cost savings from the integrated Fusion RIS/PACS”

Situation
Since 1988,West Coast Radiology Center has been growing a multi-site imaging enterprise located in southern California.In an environment of declining reimbursement and,according to Executive Director Tim Chavez,“where we are fighting competition seemingly on every street
corner ”,digital solutions are a critical success factor.“If we don ’t have the best systems in place,we are not positioned to compete.”

Concern about WCRC ’s practice management system at the time drove
Chavez to create a long-term plan for the creation of a fully integrated
radiology information solution.For the past four years,WCRC has been
patiently implementing this vision.

Requirements
The initial focus of the long-term plan was implementing a RIS.Chavez
and team contemplated several different RIS solutions based on three
critical requirements:

“The first factor was workflow – information workflow had to mirror a
radiology practice,” Chavez recalls..“Second,it had to be intuitive and
easy for staff to use,and,finally,I was concerned with the future
product path of the vendor.”

Solution
“We thought of the RIS as the component that would drive all the others,” says Chavez..“We were right. Fusion RIS offered the platform for building our fully integrated imaging system.” WCRC added the Fusion PACS in 2004 to create an integrated RIS//PACS solution.In the past year they
have also added embedded document management,embedded digital dictation and the Referring Practice Portal.

Chavez notes that the document management was an unexpected benefit to the transcriptionists.For ultrasound,as an example,tracking down clinical worksheets can cause long delays in generating a report.“Now the tech puts the worksheets right into the acquisition record.When it gets to transcription,that documentation is all right there along with the voice file and the patient demographics. It ’s a huge help.” “And the final ribbon around this great present is the
Referring Practice Portal,” Chavez adds..“Physicians now have immediate access to reports,images and patient status. We want to show off what we ’ve got,and the RPP is the way
to let referring doctors know about our fully integrated system.”

Result
Chavez ’ vision took several years to implement,,but he is well-pleased with the result.“We ’re there,” he says simply..“We have exactly
what we need.”

The implementation of the Fusion RIS gave WCRC immediate benefits in customer service.Report turnaround times were cut in half, patient information improved and scheduling optimized patient time.In addition,Chavez was able to analyze his business through the practice analysis feature,and better diagnose productivity and financial issues.“If I see an area taking too long to produce a report, that ’s just the first step in solving the problem,” Chavez explains..“I can really do a diagnosis of the practice problem and then take corrective action to improve it.”

Improvements continued as integration progressed.“We are now fully integrated,filmless and paperless,” Chavez notes..“Every single person in our organization has experienced increased efficiency,from the scheduler and transcriptionist to tech and radiologist.Plus, we are starting to really see cost savings from the integrated Fusion RIS/PACS ”

Quantified workflow results include:
30%reduction in transcription costs
50%improvement in report turnaround time
30%reduction in medical expenses
30%increase in radiologist efficiency
Chavez sums it up well.“We ’ve bought a radiology information superhighway.We are on that autobahn and moving fast!”

See Meridian Imaging Customer Story (RIS/PACS)
See Aultman Success Story (RIS/PACS)
See Bronson Healthcare Group Success Story (PACS)
See West Coast Radiology Success Story (RIS/PACS)
See Regions Hospital Success Story (PACS)
See Pediatric Diagnostic Imaging Success Story (RIS/PACS)

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