vRad Upgrades Radiology Patient Care Indices with Expanded Data and Artificial Intelligence
MINNEAPOLIS, MN — (August 24, 2016) — vRad (Virtual Radiologic), a MEDNAX, Inc. (NYSE: MD) company and the nation’s leading teleradiology services and telemedicine company, announced that it has enhanced and updated its RPCSM (Radiology Patient Care) Indices, the first findings-based national radiology benchmarking metrics, available at http://www.vrad.com/infographic/. The RPC Indices are derived from vRad’s clinical database of imaging studies from over 2,100 facilities in all 50 states. vRad’s database is a national projection of the U.S. market; the RPC Indices are aggregated from radiology studies normalized on key variables including patient age, gender, body region, geography, hospital and IDN type, bed size, modality, reasons for study order, and findings status. The RPC Indices are a “living library” of statistically significant metrics that provide hospitals, radiology groups and health systems with objective comparisons of their use of imaging to national averages and relevant peer groups. vRad is making these indices available for free and unrestricted use.vRad has expanded the RPC Indices to include five years of data, from 2011 to 2015. Furthermore, vRad enhanced the precision of RPC findings definitions using natural language processing (NLP) to differentiate between positive, critical, incidental, negative and/or normal findings.“Measuring healthcare performance and proving quality and value requires data and analytics. Using a normalized data set allows radiology groups and hospitals to objectively compare their own use of imaging to relevant peer groups,” said Shannon Werb, Chief Information Officer and Chief Operating Officer of vRad. “These comparisons empower radiology to take control of the dialogue around quality as it moves from a fee-for-volume to fee-for-value world. Tools like vRad’s RPC Indices help radiology build bridges and get alignment with physician and hospital partners — reinforced with evidence, not opinions.”The RPC Indices are part of the vRad Analytics continuum that helps hospitals better manage costs and improve operating efficiencies, and radiology groups demonstrate a new level of leadership and value in a challenging healthcare environment. The enhanced RPC Indices, available online for non-vRad clients, include three complimentary, interactive radiology infographics:Use and effectiveness of CT in the Emergency Department (ED), which allows for insight into the effectiveness of CT imaging based on Patient Age, Patient Body Region, Hospital Geography and Hospital Facility Size. Hospitals, health systems and radiology departments can compare their usage of CT imaging in the ED to similar organizations across the U.S.
A Day in the Life of Radiology, which provides critical insights based on day of week and hour of day segmentation of imaging studies from the vRad clinical database.
A Look in the Mirror, which allows users to self-select their hospital-type peer group for more relevant performance comparisons. Peer group metrics include top CT procedures (overall and by body region) and top reasons for CT study.“vRad continues to make RPC Indices available for free and unrestricted use because it’s the right thing to do to elevate radiology as a valued partner,” continued Werb. “We continue to see examples of how RPC Indices are helping our practice and those of our partners improve operational efficiencies and the quality of care for the patient communities we collectively serve.”Please visit www.vrad.com for the up-to-date online library of interactive RPC Indices.Click to tweet: vRad Upgrades, Updates RPC Indices: Findings-based Natl #Radiology Benchmarking Metrics. See Inside Data w/Greater Detail #HITAbout vRadvRad (Virtual Radiologic) is the leading national teleradiology services and telemedicine company with over 480 U.S. board-certified and eligible physicians, 75% of whom are subspecialty trained. Its clinical expertise and evidence-based insight help clients make decisions about the health of their patients and their imaging services. vRad interprets and processes patient imaging studies on the world’s largest and most advanced teleradiology PACS for 2,100+ client hospital, health system and radiology group facilities in all 50 states. The practice has 15 issued patents for innovation in telemedicine workflow, and is a recognized leader in imaging analytics and deep learning-assisted diagnostics. It is also a past winner of Frost & Sullivan’s Visionary Innovation Award for Medical Imaging Analytics (North America). For more information, please visit www.vrad.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. vRad is a MEDNAX company, a national health solutions partner specializing in neonatal and other pediatric services, anesthesia, radiology, pediatric cardiology and other physician and management services.
A Day in the Life of Radiology, which provides critical insights based on day of week and hour of day segmentation of imaging studies from the vRad clinical database.
A Look in the Mirror, which allows users to self-select their hospital-type peer group for more relevant performance comparisons. Peer group metrics include top CT procedures (overall and by body region) and top reasons for CT study.“vRad continues to make RPC Indices available for free and unrestricted use because it’s the right thing to do to elevate radiology as a valued partner,” continued Werb. “We continue to see examples of how RPC Indices are helping our practice and those of our partners improve operational efficiencies and the quality of care for the patient communities we collectively serve.”Please visit www.vrad.com for the up-to-date online library of interactive RPC Indices.Click to tweet: vRad Upgrades, Updates RPC Indices: Findings-based Natl #Radiology Benchmarking Metrics. See Inside Data w/Greater Detail #HITAbout vRadvRad (Virtual Radiologic) is the leading national teleradiology services and telemedicine company with over 480 U.S. board-certified and eligible physicians, 75% of whom are subspecialty trained. Its clinical expertise and evidence-based insight help clients make decisions about the health of their patients and their imaging services. vRad interprets and processes patient imaging studies on the world’s largest and most advanced teleradiology PACS for 2,100+ client hospital, health system and radiology group facilities in all 50 states. The practice has 15 issued patents for innovation in telemedicine workflow, and is a recognized leader in imaging analytics and deep learning-assisted diagnostics. It is also a past winner of Frost & Sullivan’s Visionary Innovation Award for Medical Imaging Analytics (North America). For more information, please visit www.vrad.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. vRad is a MEDNAX company, a national health solutions partner specializing in neonatal and other pediatric services, anesthesia, radiology, pediatric cardiology and other physician and management services.