Digital Transformation of Radiology
Shaping data-driven decisions in imaging, improving patient care
Every day you make hundreds of decisions impacting the well-being of your patients. This is becoming more and more challenging with the ever-growing amount of data. To overcome this, we drive the digital transformation of imaging to improve patient care and to provide better outcomes with increased efficiency. The digital transformation of radiology is centered around three themes:
- Intelligent Imaging to gather high-quality data while using the full potential of the systems
- AI-powered Clinical Decisions to guide decision making along the patient journey
- Streamlined Operations to increase productivity and optimize asset utilization
Explore how the digital transformation brings the future within your reach.
COVID-19: What we can learn from the pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has been so deeply impactful that it has changed the lives and the way of thinking for all of us in a very short time. We believe that the COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to significantly change the radiology and healthcare system: In particular, it might serve as a catalyst in developing more effective, efficient and, above all, more humane medicine.
Digital will be the “new normal”
The inclusion of radiological findings in confirming the COVID-19 diagnosis of a patient has significantly increased the workload of radiologists. More and more cases must be read, annotated and prioritized. AI-powered analysis of radiological images has the potential to reduce this growing burden on radiologists, speed up their reading time and accuracy.
Currently, telemedicine, remote control, diagnostic recommendations based on big data and artificial intelligence, and medical apps are revealing their enormous benefits – greater productivity, faster availability, less administrative work and, of course, the spatial separation of physician and patient. We are undergoing a paradigm shift towards digital fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read about the impact of COVID-19 on radiology from Dr. Christoph Zindel, Member of the managing board of Siemens Healthineers.
See how our Diagnostic Imaging solutions support the COVID-19 diagnosis and monitoring.
Supporting radiologists in COVID-19 evaluation by applying Artificial Intelligence to images
Magnetic Resonance (MR) images used to support physicians in detecting cardiac injury in patients
Cardiac MRI can be useful to aid physicians detect and monitor cardiac injury (e.g. myocarditis).
X-ray systems support initial assessment of severity and monitoring
Multix Impact
MOBILETT Elara Max
Diagnosis of COVID-19 and the role of Computed Tomography
CT images can help physicians differentiate between various types of infectious acquired diseases. In addition, our mobile CT workflow provides the capability for technologists to maintain a 1.5m (6 ft) distance from potentially infected patients.
Remote scanning assistance to ensure care continuity
Molecular imaging hybrid devices support screening demands
Hybrid molecular imaging devices can be used as stand alone Computed Tomography (CT) systems to perform a full range of CT applications, including high-resolution lung imaging protocols. Hybrid imaging systems can thereby extend CT capacity during peak demand.
High resolution Computed Tomography
High-resolution Biograph™ PET/CT and Symbia™ SPECT/CT systems can be used as stand alone CTs to aid in characterizing of lung changes.7
Supporting staff and preserving critical time with teamplay digital health platform
Easily share medical images in a secured environment to improve diagnostic certainty with teamplay Images
This offering is currently being provided automatically free of charge for 90 days.
teamplay myCare Companion remote care management
Specifically while during times of COVID-19, home monitoring of quarantined patients can be an opportunity for health providers to avoid the hospitalization of patients who are infected but not in a critical state. This frees up valuable resources for those patients who suffer from a severe course of disease.
We are fully committed to supporting our partners in the healthcare system to provide the best possible care for their patients.
Find out more information including disinfection recommendations for imaging scanners by clicking below.
Digital Transformation - What it means for radiology
Emerging trends and shifting market dynamics are likely to have a major impact on imaging departments worldwide in the years to come. Innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and automation are crucial enablers for expanding precision medicine, transforming care delivery, and improving patient experience at your institution.
Radiology departments are faced with a multitude of challenges today like staff shortages, increasing amounts of data, faster and precise diagnosis as well as innovative solutions. There is a need to meet these demands effectively and efficiently.
This is where digital solutions can play an increasingly vital part in transforming radiology. Using digital technologies to turn large amounts of data into insights will support more precise diagnosis, targeted treatment, and greater patient satisfaction. With a strong focus and dedicated efforts towards intelligent imaging, AI-powered clinical decisions and streamlined operations, radiology departments can facilitate better outcomes for patients and increased efficiency for radiologists, to ultimately enable improved patient care.
Watch the video to explore how the digital transformation of radiology has the potential to shape the future of healthcare for all of us.
In this video, you saw what the digital transformation of radiology stands for, and you learned about the three key focus areas to help you make better informed patient-centric decisions. Let us dive a little deeper to understand these three cornerstones and their relevance and impact:
Intelligent imaging
Innovation is central to assist in data acquisition. Intelligent solutions enable you to generate accurate data and faster image interpretation, thereby creating actionable insights. Trendsetting modality innovations empower you to achieve high quality imaging and data interpretation. Often technology isn’t used to its full potential because either the user or the technology is new, or it is a rare exam. The possibilities of digitalization help users efficiently achieve reproducible results - by unlocking the full potential of their medical imaging devices. It guides operators through imaging procedures, so that they can interact easily and naturally with both patient and technology. This has been made possible by myExam Companion that launches this new era of intelligent imaging that works with you to efficiently operate modalities. No matter the user, patient or throughput, it helps generate consistent, comprehensive results with reduced dose.
AI-powered clinical decisions
One of the most pressing concerns in radiology today is the exponential growth of data and the shortage of medical staff to handle this complex and ever-increasing amount of data. Intelligent solutions support radiologists in making better informed clinical decisions and adding value along the patient journey. Through superior integration and interpretation of data and creation of actionable insights, AI-powered solutions pave the way for shaping clinical decisions in radiology and assist radiologists and clinicians in making the right decision for every patient.
Streamlined operations
Along with staff shortages, radiology and imaging departments worldwide are faced with additional pressures like increasing workload. Digitalization can unlock a whole new level of operational performance as well as hidden potential for improvements, helping you operate more efficiently. Digital solutions like remote scanning software, customized dashboards to track targets and KPIs, and digital platforms that enable data-driven decisions along the entire patient pathway can empower you to simplify operations and create smart workflows to help reduce the workload and boost workforce productivity. With innovative solutions that optimize asset utilization and help increase efficiency, you can dedicate more time and focus on providing best possible patient care.
At Siemens Healthineers, we focus on these three areas to support you with the challenges of today and tomorrow. So let’s explore our offerings across these three themes.
myExam Companion - Intelligence that works with you
YSIO X.pree9 with myExam Companion – A leap forward in intelligent X-ray imaging
SOMATOM X.cite with myExam Companion
SOMATOM On.site – Bringing critical care imaging to your patient
syngo Virtual Cockpit
AI-Rad Companion
MR Fingerprinting (MRF)
AI-Pathway Companion
teamplay Insights
Future of radiology
What will the future of imaging look like?
Technology has opened doors to improve and support healthcare and we believe radiology has a major role to play in making medicine more precise and shaping care delivery. Two key trends in radiology that we already see today and believe will be extremely relevant in the times to come are remote service and AI-driven solutions.
Healthcare will increasingly be more broadly provided through remote services, not only to help reduce the risk of infectious diseases like COVID-19 or to be more efficient, but also making it more convenient for the patient. New approaches allow healthcare professionals to remotely interact with patients along the entire patient pathway from monitoring, to diagnosis, to therapy. In addition, remote services connect healthcare professionals to make expertise accessible and enable collaborative decision-making.
AI is already contributing significantly to radiology and with new innovations, it will revolutionize clinical workflows. In the long term, with AI-assisted image analysis improving by the day, radiology as we traditionally know it will cease to exist. This doesn’t mean that it will go away, instead it will be significantly different, and at the same time more important than ever. It will help to center and integrate data from various sources (e.g., Pathology, Lab, Genetics, Imaging) in order to best navigate and stratify patients for their personalized therapy.
Will AI take over imaging and replace radiologists?
AI is no doubt a hotly discussed topic today. Over the years, it has been gradually integrated into radiology in several different ways. It is a valuable tool that, when combined with the human expertise of radiologists and clinicians, offers vast potential to the healthcare industry.
Therefore, AI will not reduce the need for imaging but will reduce the burden of doing basic repetitive tasks and may potentially decrease the need for specialization in image interpretation. AI can help make it easier to interpret imaging findings for radiologists (and other medical personnel) with different levels of expertise, – something that could, incidentally, be extremely helpful in pandemics, where there is an incredibly high number of patients that need healthcare services in a short period of time.
Thanks to digitalization and the increasing use of AI, there could be less routine reporting which would enable radiologists to spend more time with patients and focus on complex cases. With the help of AI, radiologists could also save time on operating diagnostic machines and focus on collaborating with other disciplines. This could contribute to radiology becoming more interventional, combining diagnostic information with more personalized, image-guided therapy.
In short: Within the healthcare system, radiologists will be the catalysts of the digital and personalized medicine transformation. AI will not replace radiologists but help to stay at the pulse of medicine and innovation and drive change across disciplines for the benefit of patients.
Get insight on AI COVID-19 - Joint efforts towards precision medicine
Remote work for healthcare professionals: From a stop gap measure to a lasting transformation
Hear it from the thought leaders in Healthcare
The COVID-19 crisis will transform radiology, having a major impact on transforming care delivery, improving patient experience and digitalizing healthcare. Learn how in this “new normal”, virtual healthcare will be an established way of care delivery and AI and machine learning will become value drivers for healthcare providers.
Driving the digital transformation of radiology to improve patient care and to provide better outcomes with increased efficiency.
In Good Company: How Radiology Benefits Emergency Care
COVID-19 – Ten hypotheses on what we can learn from the crisis
News & Stories about radiology and nuclear medicine
1For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
2AI-Rad Companion Chest X-ray is currently under development; it is not for sale in the United States and other countries.
3Shi S, Qin M, Shen B, et al. Association of Cardiac Injury With Mortality in Hospitalized Patients With COVID-19 in Wuhan, China. JAMA Cardiol. Published online March 25, 2020. doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2020.0950
4Guo T, Fan Y, Chen M, et al. Cardiovascular Implications of Fatal Outcomes of Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). JAMA Cardiol. Published online March 27, 2020. doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2020.1017
5Inciardi RM, Lupi L, Zaccone G, et al. Cardiac Involvement in a Patient With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). JAMA Cardiol. Published online March 27, 2020. doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2020.1096
6A secure VPN connection to the department network is required. Other appropriately trained personnel must be in the room to care for patient, position the patient, and manually start the scan.
7Note: Symbia T and Intevo Excel are not indicated for use as a Standalone CT
8Due to regulations data exchange between data center regions is restricted. The products/features/service offerings are not commercially available in all countries. If the services are not marketed in countries due to regulatory or other reasons, the service offering cannot be guaranteed. Please contact your local Siemens organization for further details.
9YSIO X.pree, myExam Collimate, myExam 3D Camera, myExam IQ, Auto Thorax Collimation, Virtual Collimation, and Smart Virtual Ortho are pending 510(k) clearance, and are not yet commercially available in the United States and other countries. Their future availability cannot be guaranteed. Please contact your local Siemens Healthineers organization for further details.
10The product is pending 510(k) clearance, and is not yet commercially available in the United States or other countries. This product does not yet fulfill all the essential requirements according to the European Medical Device Directive (93/42/EEC) and its national implementations neither all applicable General Safety and Performance Requirements according to the European Medical Device Regulation 2017/745. It is not yet commercially available in the European Union.
11syngo Virtual Cockpit isn't commercially available in all countries. For regulatory reasons, its future availability can't be guaranteed. Precondition: Expert-i enabled modality from Siemens Healthineers.
12Several devices of AI-Rad Companion are planned and under development, not commercially available in all countries, and their future availability cannot be ensured. Please contact your local Siemens Healthineers organization for further details.
13The products/features (mentioned herein) are not commercially available in the United States or other countries. Their future availability cannot be guaranteed.
14teamplay products are not commercially available in all countries. Due to regulatory reasons their future availability cannot be guaranteed.
Please contact your local Siemens Healthineers organization for further details.