Communication of medical images, text, and messages in inter-enterprise systems: a case study in Norway

There is an increasing demand to discuss diagnostic images and reports of difficult cases with experienced staff. A possible solution besides physically transporting patients and material is to use high-speed communication networks to transfer images and reports electronically. With the web application PACSflow we have developed a solution to transfer images, reports, and messages as a single package in a one-step procedure. The PACSflow is an interoperable and standard compliant web-based application, which gives clinicians a user-friendly interface for their work on a daily basis. The solution assumes that the diagnostic images are compatible with the digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) format. The Department of Cardiology at the Rikshospitalet University Hospital in Oslo, Norway, and the Department of Internal Medicine at the Sørlandet Sykehus in Arendal, Norway, are making clinical use of the system. Initial tests indicate that use of PACSflow has reduced the time required to prepare and transfer data by a factor of 3.