DICOM questions, answered.

*Connectivity issues due to the DICOM standard are still occurring even though it is a mature standard. This is due to a lack of training, a professional certification effort that is still in its infancy, and user errors. *DICOM modality worklists, sometimes not able to filter out exams that should be performed at a specific modality, are one of the troublespots.

New DICOM extensions for softcopy and hardcopy display consistency.

The DICOM standard defines in detail how medical images can be communicated. However, the rules on how to interpret the parameters contained in a DICOM image which deal with the image presentation were either lacking or not well defined. As a result, the same image frequently looks different when displayed on different workstations or printed on a film from various printers.

DICOM versus HL7 for modality interfacing.

Digital modalities such as CT, MRI, Ultrasound and Computerized Radiography systems, generating softcopy images to be used by a Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS), need to identify the images properly in order to retrieve and manage them. In many cases, a technologist re-enters patient demographic and study related information at the modality, even although it is usually already present somewhere in the hospital information system (IS). In order to achieve a higher level of efficiency and uniquely identify the created image objects, it is obvious that an interface between the IS and modality to exchange this information is highly desired.

All you need to know about a PACS RFP, you learned in kindergarten.

Key to purchasing any picture archiving and communications system (PACS) is the generation of a request for proposal (RFP), which defines the system's requirements. An RFP is not difficult to create and, in fact, one can follow simple rules such as outlined in Robert Fulghum's book, All I Really Need to Know, I Learned in Kindergarten. "Take time to look" is the first rule--don't jump into new adventures.