Business Intelligence

Providers utilize business intelligence to monitor referral patterns and collaborate with clinicians who order their services. Such analytics tools have also been deployed in the specialty to improve productivity, track patient satisfaction and bolster quality.

Philip L. Lund Appointed Chief of Staff at Valley Medical Center

The largest nonprofit healthcare provider in the Seattle-Tacoma, WA area has a new Chief-of-Staff.

New PET-CT Biomarker Could Help ID Alzheimer's--if It Works

In the rush to tout Amyvid, the amyloid-plaque-seeking biomarker created by Eli Lilly, as a diagnostic breakthrough in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, some are urging caution — including the Alzheimer's Association.

Foundation Radiology to Provide 24/7 Reads for United Radiology of MD

Foundation Radiology Group of Pittsburgh, PA signed an exclusive teleradiology deal to read advanced imaging studies performed at the Rockville, MD-based United Radiology.

"Choosing Wisely" Highlights Opportunities to Improve Utilization by Cutting Waste

Radiologists can play a key part in helping referring physicians concentrate on areas where they can eliminate financial waste and unnecessary testing, says an ACR fellow who worked on the American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation Choosing Wisely campaign.

Hospital Radiology Partners Creates CMO Post for Dr. Mary Saltz

The Atlanta-based Hospital Radiology Partners (HRP), a subsidiary of HIT provider Jackson Healthcare, of Alpharetta, GA, has recruited Dr. Mary Saltz to be its inaugural CMO, according to Modern Physician.

Magellan Extends Rad Contract with Coventry Health

Magellan Health Services subsidiary NIA extended its contract to manage radiology benefits at the Bethesda, MD-based Coventry Health Care through 2015. The existing contracts were set to expire in 2012 and 2013.

AHRAdatalynx to Drive Improvements through Competition

In what its developers are calling a 21st century upgrade for the organization, AHRA: the Association for Medical Imaging Management, has automated and digitized its annual member survey via a comprehensive data tool that could drive performance improvement industry-wide.

Study Shows There’s No Time Like the Present for Bad News

The seven-day turnaround time commonly used by hospital imaging staff to give themselves a cushion for reading scans may no longer be sufficient for patients in the Information Age.

Around the web

The patient, who was being cared for in the ICU, was not accompanied or monitored by nursing staff during his exam, despite being sedated.

The nuclear imaging isotope shortage of molybdenum-99 may be over now that the sidelined reactor is restarting. ASNC's president says PET and new SPECT technologies helped cardiac imaging labs better weather the storm.

CMS has more than doubled the CCTA payment rate from $175 to $357.13. The move, expected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cardiac CT, received immediate praise from imaging specialists.