Picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) have been the go-to option for medical imaging, and many healthcare providers are engagedin upgrading their PACS system to a new generation. Phil Colbourne warns that this can involve significant investments and reduced systems flexibility, with costs set to spiral.
Picture archiving andcommunication systems(PACS)havebeenthego-tooption for medicalimaging for several decades, and despite some shortcomingsmany healthcareprovidersareengagedinupgrading their PACS systemtoanew generation.Hyland EMEA Healthcare director,Phil Colbourne,warns that this can involve significant investments and reduced systems flexibility,with costs set to spiral as digitisation advances.
PACS started off as a relatively cost-effective way of storing images, however, regular upgrades and maintenance to storage platforms and other associated software have been pushing costs upwards. Now aging systems are required to cope with ever greater demands on storage, while many PACS systems still require specialised hardware for clinicians to actually view and use the images.
Longer term, devices will become more powerful, specialised and expensive as the need to cope with larger volumes and more sophisticated images grows. This represents another inbuilt cost spiral that is unlikely to recede, if hospitals continue to rely solely on PACS for imaging.
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