Lasting first impressions: Partners of a lifetime

While researching PACS back in 2001 for his imaging center in Burlington, Canada, Dr. Coventry Louisy was unimpressed with some of the corporate types with whom he met during the vetting process, but after his meeting with Vijay Ramanathan, he knew he’d not only found the right PACS, but he’d also found a true partner in RamSoft. Nearly twenty years later, Dr. Louisy continues to be impressed with RamSoft’s innovative technology and workflow solutions.

The Importance of Knowledge

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Introduced to Ramanathan, now president and CEO, RamSoft, by a third party, Dr. Louisy specifically remembers the meeting and how differently it went. RamSoft was a family company, and with that comes a pride and dedication that is often missing in a large corporate environment. In addition, there was also an intimate product knowledge that other vendors’ sales people could not provide. When Dr. Louisy met with the young Ramanathan, he recalls what a lasting impression that the young man made on him.

“I will never forget it,” recalls Dr. Louisy. “I had been meeting with various PACS vendors who, though they represented larger companies, didn’t really understand what was ‘under the hood’ of their PACS product. I was not impressed by that. Then, in comes Vijay, this young man who could tell me anything and everything down to the smallest detail about the RamSoft PACS. It was an easy decision for me. The price was fair and I knew I was working with someone that was truly interested in supporting my business.”

Dr. Louisy soon came to understand that Ramanathan had such an intimate product knowledge because he was involved in building it—and that dedication and pride shines through when someone is talking about something they’ve created.

“He was able to tell me all the ins and outs of the product as well as the different features that we’d be able to use at my practice. His in-depth product knowledge was very impressive,” adds Dr. Louisy.

Satisfaction and Prosperity

Over the years, Dr. Louisy and RamSoft have grown their partnership and Dr. Louisy feels one of the reasons they have worked so well together is because they are both innovators. RamSoft has brought groundbreaking solutions to radiology and Dr. Louisy has developed a specialty in breast imaging that is both innovative and cost saving in one unified system -- used by radiologists, technologists, and administrative staff containing all images, reports, and documents for the patient.

Dr. Louisy has been dedicated to operating at the forefront of imaging, using advanced diagnostic imaging tools. A large percentage of the imaging center procedures are for breast imaging, typically completed via a mammography. Mammograms have become an important screening tool for early diagnosis of breast cancer. With a positive finding, patients are typically referred for MR imaging or biopsy, but Dr. Louisy has revolutionized breast imaging by using 3D ultrasound.

Using 3D ultrasound, Dr. Louisy can image the breast from the nipple to the chest wall. Using power Doppler, he can also see if a mass is vascular or not. Because CT and MR imaging are only used in hospitals in Canada, offering this additional imaging procedure provides patients with increased access to care and has the potential to affect treatment decisions more quickly and cost effectively.

Dr. Louisy is still a strong supporter of mammograms for early detection of breast cancer, but strongly believes in 3D ultrasound as a revolutionary technique for advanced breast imaging.

“Mammograms should definitely continue to be used for early detection. I know there’s been a lot of talk recently, but to dismiss it as a screening tool would be foolish. Mammograms provide a baseline and before we had that, we didn’t have anything. But we also know that mammograms don’t work as well detecting cancer in women with dense breasts. MR imaging is undisputed as an effective tool for advanced breast imaging, but it is also very expensive and there can be patient comfort issues,” Dr. Louisy explains.

Dr. Louisy believes that the sophistication in the technology behind his PACS has enabled him to develop these advanced breast imaging techniques using 3D ultrasound.

“We’ve done a lot of work specializing in 3D ultrasound for breast imaging and believe it or not, when we’ve tested head-to-head, MR hasn’t shown anything that we haven’t seen on ultrasound. I should mention that I wouldn’t even be able to do this type of imaging if not for my PACS for viewing in one unified system. We were first in the world to access microcalcification in the breast using ultrasound, but we needed a good PACS to do it.”

Lasting partnerships, sharing the vision

Just as Dr. Louisy has dedicated his practice to providing advanced imaging solutions for his patients, RamSoft has revolutionized radiology workflows by continued development of innovative solutions in RIS, PACS, Teleradiology, and document management software that improves global healthcare communication for a better tomorrow. Using an internet based platform, there is much less administrative work and problems with interoperability and product interfacing. Dr. Louisy has never looked back since his decision on RamSoft PACS. He sees RamSoft as his partner—a partner who is truly interested in making his business successful.

“The radiology industry has been through so many changes over time, the biggest of which is probably the migration from film to digital. Our PACS allows me a lot of flexibility in visualization. I can do computer assisted mammo—I can enlarge an image, magnify, or change the density, and I do all these things using my PACS. RamSoft works with us to better understand our needs and incorporate that information into new products and innovations,” says Dr. Louisy. “I plan on continuing our partnership for the long-term. RamSoft has always been an innovator, and I know they will consistently bring forward new ideas and innovations that will benefit radiology.”