Donnington Valley workshop a great success!
1st December 2009
A small but select group of attendees enjoyed an in-depth analysis of the why's and wherefore's of introducing PACS systems to manage and organise the growing archive of digital images we all have nowadays. Whether you have a neat shelf of clearly-labelled CDs/DVDs with all your ultrasound images or x-rays, or a heap of files scattered around on different workstations, most of us would find it much easier to access things if there is just one place to go and you can search easily. Marcus Head explained the absolute basics of moving into this territory, and demonstrated how all imaging at Rossdale and Partners is collectively accessed through the diary system in their Eclipse PMS, locally or from a remote connection.
Bruce Bladon expanded the theme with a masterclass on the development of Dicom standards and their relevance to modern veterinary practice. At O'Gorman, Slater, Main and Partners, vets are automatically able to see lists of patients booked for imaging procedures on scanner computers and to let the system attach imaging to the relevant animal history in each case. Typos with animal/owner names can virtually be eliminated and the vet can concentrate on the clinical work. Imaging is fetched to individual workstations according to pre-designated rules, ready for the consulting vet to view when he/she is ready. Particular images can be shared easily via the web with referring vets for consultation and client information. Bruce highlighted the progress made since the first installation of a Kodak Master Page x-ray system in 2004 to date and gave a virtual tour of the computer systems required for PACS and viewing facilities within the practice.
Sarah Powell showed us a wonderful selection of examples of her 3D imaging manipulation and diagnostic work. Delegates were talked through the different kinds of image processing available within her tool of choice, OsiriX for Mac. OsiriX offers all modern rendering modes: Multiplanar reconstruction (MPR), Surface Rendering, Volume Rendering and Maximum Intensity Projection (MIP). Sarah explained how to choose which method to apply and how to use the different kinds of visualisation available to make the best use of images for diagnostic purposes, and for teaching and presentation.
The iPhone app, developed jointly with fellow Cambridge company, nfonix, provided detailed information about lectures, speakers, times and venues, enabling Congress members to create a personal schedule for the events they were most keen to catch.
We would also like to thank CrashPlan Pro, the backup software guys who produce systems able to back up any size installation, from the smallest PC or Mac you use at home to the largest business data centre – and everything in between, for their valuable support.
