Digital Radiology News

Carestream PACS Version 11 at CPN Health Services

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 20:31:00 +0000

As part of an integrated PACS and DRX Evolution system installation, InTelemed installed the latest version of Carestream PACS, V11, at the Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Care Service clinic in Shawnee, Oklahoma. The installation went very smoothly and was completed in three days. Training followed the next week and the system went fully operational the last week of January 2010.
Being an IHS affiliated organization, CPN uses RPMS for their RIS and patient information system. The Carestream PACS system is fully integrated with RPMS to allow two way transmission of patient demographics and completed reports between PACS and RPMS. For disaster recovery, CPN utilizes Carestream Hosted Archive service. All patient images are sent nightly to Carestream off-site archive in New York, ensuring patient images are fully protected with limited intervention from the clinic IT staff.
The Caresteam web-enabled PACS server is available to physicians via any workstation in the clinic, and over the public Internet via the CPN web site. Images are transmitted off-site for diagnostic reading.

Additional pictures of DRX Evolution at CPN Health Services

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 21:35:00 +0000

This past week we completed the PACS installation at Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Center (CPN) in Shawnee, OK. Training is going on right now. I was there this week and snapped a few pictures of their DRX Evolution room. This is VERY nice. They absolutely love the system and it is working very smoothly. Tuesday was orthopedic day and the improved workflow really allowed them to keep up with their workload. Once PACS training is complete they will be completely digitital. In fact they ran out of film this week for their Agfa Drystar 3000 and decided to not purchase any more at this time.

Here is an overall view of the room. Luckily they had plenty of space for a table and wall bucky. The wall bucky along the back is motorized and rolls back and forth in front of the table. Auto-positioning software moves the xray tube into position automatically. The techs use a simple hand held wireless remote to move the tube and bucky into one of the 25 pre-set autopositions.

This next picture shows the DRX detector in the table bucky. It can easily be moved from the table bucky to the wall bucky as needed, allowing CPN to have the functionality of a dual detector system at the cost of a single detector system. The table is full 4-way floating and can handle 650 lb patients.

A touch screen display is located at the xray tube, allowing the technicians to verify patient name while standing next to the patient. They can also see the proper positioning for a particular exaam and verify settings needed.

The wall stand is motorized and can easily be moved along the back of the table, or out for easy access by wheelchair patients. The arm extends and allows the stand to rotate horizontal for extremity work or vertical for standing work.

The touch screen console works like all other Carestream CR and DR systems and is fully integrated with RPMS/RIS and PACS. Note the spare battery to the right of the keyboard. Although the DRX detectory is charged while it is docked into the table or wall bucky, the spare battery ensures they always have enough power to perform patient exams.

Another view of the room with the wall bucky to the left, tilted horizontal for extremity or wheelchair work. The table top can float to the right completely out of the way.

We hope to bring you some video soon of the DRX Evolution in action at CPN. Stay tuned.

DRX Evolution at work in Springfield IL

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 16:34:00 +0000

Here is a really good video showing how the DRX Evolution is being used in Springfield, IL. We are working on a video of the DRX Evolution at the Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Care Center in Shawnee, but in the meantime you can get an idea of how the system works with this video.

Citizen Potawatomi DRX Evolution now operational

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:27:00 +0000

We comleted the installation of the Carestream DRX Evolution at Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Service last Friday and training was completed earlier this week. They are now fully operational and we will begin PACS installation Jan 4. Here are a few pictures from the installation.

Uninstalling the old table.

Hauling the old equipment away.

Installing the new DRX Evolution

The new system installed and nearly ready for operation.

The DRX1 wireless detector in the table bucky.

Old xray removed at Citizen Potawatomi Nation

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:23:00 +0000

Last week the contractors successfully removed the old xray system and dark room at Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Services facility in Shawnee. Next week they work on the electrical and unistrut system and the following week we install the new DRX Evolution!

Room demolition at Citizen Potawatomi Nation

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:11:00 +0000

The subcontractors began removing the old GE x-ray unit at Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Service today. The semi-truck should be there on Wednesday to haul off the old system. The darkroom is getting converted to a computer room, and we should be installing a rack and a new Sonicwall firewall there next week. Hope to get some video and pics as we go along.

InTelemed invited as first "guest blogger" on Carestream DRBlog

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:54:00 +0000

I recently was invited to become a guest blogger on Carestream's new DR Blog. InTelemed has been a leader in providing DR products (as well as CR and PACS) to a variety of healthcare facilities, and we sold the very first DRX Evolution DR in the United States to Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Services.

As a guest blogger on the DR Blog, we will be highlighting our installation of this DRX Evolution over the next three months, and on how we integrate this new system into the IHS RPMS RIS system and Carestream PACS system.

Citizen Potawatomi DRX Evolution Project Update

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:23:00 +0000

We finally have dates scheduled to install the DRX Evolution at Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Care in Shawnee. They will be doing room renovation starting November 16 and the actual system installation will begin December 7. PACS is scheduled for installation Jan 4. In the meantime we have been ordering accessories like firewalls, battery backups, racks for the servers, electrical equipment, and all the myriad of details necessary for such a project. I have used Microsoft Project for years to coordinate these complete projects and just upgraded to MS Project 2007 for use in this project. We have a detailed GANTT chart with assignments, expected work time, responsibilities and resource allocations. I also just upgraded my Microsoft Visio to 2007 to use for developing the network documentation. Things are looking to be right on schedule!

Roller Derby

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:38:00 +0000

This really doesn't have much to do with radiology at all. Well, maybe if one of the girls breaks a leg they might get an xray.

My daughter Emily is the coach of the Red Dirt Rebellion Roller Derby team and they are having a huge bout in the main arena at the Cox Convention Center on October 30. Emily works for me off and on producing our marketing material. She came up with the idea for this video, directed and produced it, while I just ran the video camera. I think it is a pretty darn cool video (from a proud papa of course).

The big difference between Emily's team and other local teams is they have a HUGE banked roller derby track just like from the 1960's. Their track was actually the one used in the Whipit movie that is playing now. These girls in wild outfits rocket around the banked track at warp speed, sounding like a freight train as the go past, banging heads and knocking each other over the rail. It is quite entertaining and fun to watch.

If you get a chance stop by for the contest. They will be playing Amarillo. It is a fun family event to watch, the kids love it.

Put your old xray cassettes to good use!

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 23:42:00 +0000

Radiology techs at Raleigh Fitkin Hospital in Swaziland

I recently received an email from Dr. J.D. Crooks with Diagnostic Radiology in Edmond, looking for some used analog xray cassettes. I have known Dr. Crooks for many years. He recently went on a mission trip to Manzini, Swaziland and worked at Raleigh Fitkin Hospital, the only public hospital in the entire country. (Good luck with that link, it is very, very slow to Africa) This is a VERY poor country where unemployement hovers at 70% and the average wage is $0.47 cents per day.

The xray equipment at the hospital is VERY old.

The radiology department has 4 techs who rotate call every fourth night. They take films about every 5 minutes in two nearly identical rooms. The hospital has two donated ultrasound machines (one donated by Dr. Crooks' church and the Bethany Hospital) and perform approximately 60 ultrasounds per day, primarily o/b walk-in's. The hospital does 40 deliveries per day, all using natural childbirth methods. Dr. Crooks said he was the first radiologist there in many, many years and in fact, they have not had a radiology report in the hospital at all before his since the hospital opened in 1925!

The hospital does 40 deliveries per day, all natural.

Dr. Crooks says a real need at the hospital is decent xray cassettes. The ones they have now are in very poor condition. If anyone has cassettes they would like to donate, please drop me an email or call me and I will get them to Dr. Crooks, who will take care of getting them shipped overseas.

This is a great cause and a great way we, the radiology community, can help out others in dire need with some of our older equipment.

Dr. Crooks and a team of 10 physicians saw over 1,300 people in one day. "I saw more TB in 30 minutes than I saw in 30 years in Edmond" said Dr. Crooks.

Dr. Crooks' long term goal is to get a donated CR system installed with decent Internet so the hospital can send their images to his group in Edmond, who would read them for free.

The team of doctors who volunteered at Raleigh Fitkin Hospital in Swaziland. Dr. Crooks is on the far left.

If you know Dr. Crooks you are welcome to give him a call directly. I didn't put is email and phone on here because of spam concerns.

Heart Attack Grill

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 18:14:00 +0000

If we had one of these in Oklahoma I bet our radiology departments would be much busier!

Carestream PACS V11 Selection by St. John's Med Center

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 14:49:00 +0000

Below is a video produced by RT Image magazine that explains why St. John Medical Center in Tulsa chose the Carestream V11 SuperPACS architecture. SuperPACS allowed them to connect their disparate existing archives into one seamless viewing solution that allows the radiologist to view images regardless of their location. In other words, the images don't have to be on the Carestream PACS archive, they can be on a totally different PACS server, but the radiologists get a single worklist view of all studies.

Planning

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:24:00 +0000

I met with Citizen Potawatomi Nation (CPN) personnel yesterday along with the Carestream DRX project manager to review plans for their new room and for the PACS installation. My background is with network integration so I was basically just listening and soaking it all in when they were talking about modifying their Unistrut system, room positioning and workflow for various x-ray procedures, etc. When questions arose about the network integration, I was the "go to" person for all that info. We discussed IP addressing, network cabling requirements, how we were going to connect their radiology network to their clinic network, all those details were right down my alley.

Am back in the office today working in Microsoft Project and Visio to create a detailed project plan and network drawing. This is a fairly complex project with dozens of critical steps ranging from electrical to room remodeling to firewall installation, network cabling, documentation, installation and training. I like to use MS Project to help me understand the timeframes and relationships to each task. I just start pounding away writing all the tasks in Project, then go in later and organize them, link them together so that one task must be completed before the other task can start, and assign resources to each task. This way I can get a general timeline overview of the entire project, see where we are going to have critical time path problems, and start putting a schedule together.

I use Visio to document their current network and create a visual reference for the planned network. Many people use spreadsheets for this task, but I find Visio allows me to create a graphic diagram that is much easier for people to follow and understand. From within Visio I can then export spreadsheet like information documenting how things are installed. This includes IP addresses, DNS info, gateways, VPN tunnels, NAT mapping, DICOM info such as AET and ports, etc.

I am a VERY BIG believer in documentation. The last few PACS systems we have installed have taken less than a week before the customer was fully operational. I hear and even see horror stories where it can take months to get a PACS system up and running. I believe that proper planning up front can eliminate those types of problems. Just like painting a car or a house, most of the work is up front in the "prep" time, in our case, the planning time. Do all your work up front and then when it comes time to "paint" or install, things go much quicker and smoother.

Move Complete!

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 13:26:00 +0000

Wow, what a disaster. You would think after helping customers with their telecommunications needs for years, we would have this all figured out. WRONG! I forgot one very important point. For as long as I have been involved in networking, communications companies like Cox, our provider, consistently over-commit and under-deliver on their promises. What was I thinking? I knew that, but assumed this time it would be different. Well, you know the saying about "assumed"...

Our original target date for our move was September 1. Cox originally told us no problem with that date. Our location was brand new construction. Then after signing contracts, making commitments to move, Cox tells us two days before we actually move "oh, we don't have service at THAT building and won't have it for two weeks. Sorry."

ARGGH!!! We had already committed to the move, tenants at our old location had already committed to their move, everything was in place. So for the first two weeks of September we were at a nice new location with NO PHONES AND NO INTERNET!!! Thank goodness for cell phones, but in today's world it is really hard to work without Internet. We are a very high tech company and a nearly paperless office, so its not like we could just plop down at another place and work. Well, we could if we had INTERNET at our office. But all our servers were isolated on an island, unreachable from anywhere except in the office. It's been many years since I have been in that situation.

After two weeks of struggle we finally were able to get our Internet up. But then the next challenge was getting our phones ported. Originally we were told by Cox we could port all our phone numbers. Later we found out that was not doable, so they were going to port just our 800 number. As of today we STILL don't have our 800 number ported over, thirty days AFTER our move.

Sorry for all the trouble you have have had reaching us. Things are starting to get better and as soon as we get our 800 number moved, hopefully next week, we should be back to normaly operations. I LOVE the new office. It is only 6 miles from home in a brand new office park and one mile from I-35.

Our new information:

InTelemed
6976 Highwater Circle
Suite D
Edmond, OK 73034
405-513-5104
405-471-5554 fax
800-428-9288 (we hope SOMEDAY soon)
405-641-3830 my cell

IP, IP, IP everwhere

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 12:13:00 +0000

IP = Internet Protocol
"...is the set of communications protocols used for the Internet and other similar networks." wikipedia

The key to understanding digital radiology is having a solid fundamental knowledge of the TCP/IP protocol. A solid foundation of knowledge - basically knowing the 7 layer ISO model and TCP/IP for network communications - is the foundation, the building block, of everything comes after, whether it be DICOM, network communications, system troubleshooting, etc. Just like knowing the alphabet is fundamental to learning to read, understanding the ISO model and TCP/IP is fundamental to networking and digital radiology.

Our first step in building the PACS system at Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Services is to document their current IP network and assign IP addresses to the new equipment. We need information on their current subnet scheme, their default gateway, their radiology gateway IP and firewall, DNS addresses, any public IP's, any static routes, etc. Once that is documented then we will develop a network drawing showing all the devices and addressing assignments. This will give us a roadmap for the deployment of the PACS system.

Once the documentation is complete, InTelemed will work with the clinic IT staff to prepare the network for the PACS system. We will need to install the Sonicwall firewall for radiology, NAT MAP the public IP's to the appropriate private IP's, map a publically addressable URL to the IP of the PACS server, set up firewall rules & security, deploy the gigabit switch for the network, and basically complete all the necessary groundwork. Just like building a new factory, our first step is to prepare the network infrastructure.

Next week we will be meeting with the clinic staff to review the new Kodak DRX Evolution room re-design and finalizing the network documentation. We have two weeks to get the network documented and ready for the PACS deployment.

Connecting RPMS to PACS and the radiologist

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:12:00 +0000

As part of our ongoing effort to educate customers on the steps needed to implement PACS, we are blogging about the planning and integration required for Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Clinic (CPN) PACS implementation.

RPMS stands for Resource and Patient Management System. It was developed initially by the Veterans Administration and later enhanced by IHS and VA personnel. It is widely used throughout Indian health facilities.

Our first task was to contact CPN's radiologist, Dr. Watts in Edmond. In talking to Dr. Watts, he said we needed to contact his transcription company, Now Transcription, to discuss the integration. So we contacted Shelly Evans at Now Transcription. She said they use Infraware as their transcription solution, and Infraware supported HL7 integration. Shelly sent me the interface documents that Infraware needs to define their end of the interface.

The anticipated workflow is for CPN to enter an exam in RPMS, which will then trigger an order HL7 message. This message will be sent to the Carestream PACS system as well as Dr. Watts transcription service. This order will contain relevent patient and exam information.

Once the exam is complete, the images will be sent to the Carestream PACS, which will auto-forward those to Dr. Watts. He will read the images and dictate his findings. NOW Transcription will transcribe the report, Dr Watts will sign the report just as he does now, and the final report will be sent back to RPMS via an HL7 REPORT message. Once RPMS receives the message it will then be sent to the Carestream PACS so that physicians can view the images along with the reports.

We are working to confirm this workflow, get a final price from Infraware on their end of the Interface, and confirm all this can be done seemlessly. Stay tuned.

InTelemed to install Carestream PACS & DR at Citizen Potawatomi Health Clinic

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:08:00 +0000

InTelemed was recently awarded a contract to install a Carestream PACS and Kodak DRX Evolution digital radiography system at Citizen Potawatomi Nation Health Clinic in Shawnee, Oklahoma. The Carestream Version 11 PACS system will be integrated with RPMS, the HIS/RIS system used by many Indian healthcare facilities.

As part of the project, we will be blogging about the installation, planning and coordination effort so that other healthcare facilities can see what is involved with implementing a state-of-the-art PACS and DR system.

DRX-1 Battery Swap

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:41:00 +0000

Each DRX-1 battery transmits 80-100 images to the DRX console before needing replacement. Replacing the battery could not be easier - about like changing the battery on a cell phone. Simple.

DRX-1 Tethered Option

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:33:00 +0000

The Carestream Kodak DRX-1 is a revolutionary product in that it fits inside a traditional xray bucky and transmits images wirelessly to the DRX-1 console. A battery fits right inside the cassette and the cassette fits into any standard size bucky. Each battery will transmit approximately 80-100 images to the console before you need to replace it with a spare.

One option that is available for the DRX-1 is a tethered power connection. This tethered connection allows the DRX-1 to charge the battery while it is in the bucky, yet you can still pull the system out and use it portable when needed. You have a choice - either tethered or wireless - and you can move quickly between each option.

Smart.

Kingfisher Hospital moves to new facility

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:27:00 +0000

September 1 saw Kingfisher Regional Hopsital move to their new facility south of town. InTelemed was there to help them move some of their radiology equipment from the old facility to the new facility. It was very nice to see their shiny new place and everyone was excited. Congratulations on the move and good luck at your new location!

InTelemed is Moving

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 16:32:00 +0000

After 12 years at our current location at Wiley Post Airport in Bethany, InTelemed is moving north to Edmond, Oklahoma. Our new location is near I-35 and offers quick access to the OKC Metro area, as well as the Turner Turnpike and Tulsa.

Please make a note of our new address:

InTelemed LLC
6975 Highwater Circle
Suite C
Edmond, OK 73034

Kodak LS-40 Digitizer

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:15:00 +0000

Yesterday afternoon I worked on a Kodak LS-40 digitizer at Kingfisher Regional Hospital. The vast majority of digitizers we work on are the Kodak/Lumisys LS-75 systems. The radiology director called to say images lacked contrast. I had replaced the laser & power supply a few months ago, and had replaced some bearings a few months prior to that. I wasn't able to diagnose the problem over the phone so went on-site to check out the system.

Upon initial testing it was quite clear the system had drifted far out of calibration. This was quite unusual, since typically a calibration will last a year or so. The images clearly lacked contrast, the dark areas of the film were just black blobs on the screen, and they clearly were not diagnostic quality.

So I pulled the covers off and began a thorough examination. The new laser I had installed was still good and strong, putting out a solid 2 milliwatts of power. The laser is rated at 2 milliwatts and is useable down to slightly less than 1 milliwatt, so it was still putting out full power like it should. The reference amp power was quite low, so I adjusted it back up to 6 volts and reran the calibration tests. The system still was not fulling passing the tests, although it was closer to spec. My big concern was the system was not reading the darkest areas of the test film. I was later to figure out this part was an "operator head gap error" or in other words, me - the operator - had disengaged my brain!

Unable to get the digitizer properly calibrated, it was time to head back to the shop and get the "big gun" equipment - my oscilloscope. I seldom need the o-scope for digitizer work, but when things are not working like they should, the o-scope is the tool needed to figure out what is going on. There are dozens of calibrations on the digitizer system - everything from film density to scan width to to laser power. To fix a system that is totally out of whack can take hours of very fine adjustments. The laser digitizer basically converts analog input - a high powered laser beam - into a digital format. There are literally dozens of analog pot adjustment points on the circuit board. You have to use the o-scope and volt meter and laser power meter to make very fine adjustments and tweak the pots to get proper voltages out of a dozen test points.

I ended up spending six hours adjusting the system to bring it back into calibration, and calibrated it three different times, trying to get it closer to spec. I have no idea why it was so far out of spec all of a sudden. Typically only one or two components drift out of calibration at a time.

In the end I was stuck on the fact that while the images looked great and the system showed to be properly calibrated, it still would not detect really dark areas of the film. The system would cut off the optical density at 3.2 OD. Normally I was used to seeing digitizers work all the way up to 3.8 OD, about the limits of my test film. I was stumped after six hours of work. Everything showed to be perfect but still the darkest areas of the film could not be detected.

At times like this I like to kick back and engage my brain. I sat back in a chair with the 400 page service manual and reread key parts to make sure I hadn't missed anything. Nope, all was fine. Then I went on the Internet and did some research and that was when I figured out the LS-40 only supports and optical density of 3.2 - not 3.8 like the LS-75 I normally work with. So the last hour I had been chasing my tail, trying to figure out why I could not get the last bit of calibration to work and wondering why the system passed all the tests 100%.

I ended up not charging the customer for the last hour of my work, since it was a "senior moment" on my part. Next time I will remember that an LS-40 does not have the optical density of an LS-75. It is closer in performance to a CCD scanner and cannot handle the really dark, dense areas of a film. With an LS-75 you can put a piece of clear scotch tape on the darkest area of a film, and the LS-75 will detect the tape, while an LS-40 and a CCD digitizer cannot.

Carestream DRX-Evolution Announced

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:08:00 +0000

Carestream just announced another really cool product, the DRX-Evolustion.

Based on the innovated DRX-1 wireless DR system, the new DRX Evolustion combines the flexibility of a DRX-1 wireless detector with a digitally controlled and integrate x-ray system. You can start small with a single wall stand detector, and then expand and grow your system with a floor mounted table as needed. You get the flexibility of a traditional x-ray room with the convenience of a wireless DR detector, plus best of all, service from a world renown source.

Contact InTelemed for more information on this innovative new product.

DRX Evolustion Brochure

DRX Evolustion Site Planning Guide

Carestream SuperPACS Architecture

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:17:00 +0000

PACS has been around for a number of years, and many mid-sized or larger healthcare facilities have a variety of PACS and RIS systems in place. As reimbursement drops and patient workload increases, organizations must find ways to streamline and optimize their workflow. We have often seen healthcare organizations where the radiologist and imaging volume may be very high in one facility, and under-utilized in another facility. The radiologist must learn to use different software at each facility to read images, which is inefficient.

Carestream has developed a product called SuperPACS that ties these disparate PACS systems together. Images can be created in the source PACS and RIS at once facility, then sent to the Carestream SuperPACS system. Here a single integrated worklist is created despite the images coming from different source destinations and facilities. The images can be read, the reports dictated, transcribed and signed, then the final reports sent back to the appropriate PACS/RIS system. This allows the radiologist to share and allocate workload, consult with other radiologists about a specific case, and not be tied to a particular location. Healthcare organizations can have one comprehensive view of their imaging workflow, yet leverage their investment in their existing PACS systems.

Saint John's Hospital in Tulsa recently implemented SuperPACS across their enterprise, tied various PACS system into one integrated view. This approach is much more cost effective than replacing all your existing PACS systems and gives you the productivity gains inherent in an integrated enterprise workflow.

SuperPACS Brochure
SuperPACS White Paper

Refurbishing and Old Workhorse

noreply@blogger.com (James Pratt) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 21:33:00 +0000

We recently received a call from Parkview Hospital in El Reno, Oklahoma about their venerable Kodak film digitizer. Originally installed by InTelemed and Kodak at their facility in 1994, the system had provided many years of reliable service. It was refurbished in 2004 with a new computer, new software an a new laser. But this time the computer that was connected to the digitizer failed, so the IT staff at Parkview called us in for assistance.

The first order of business was to try to resurrect the existing computer. Older Kodak digitizers utilize a proprietary interface card that connects the computer to the digitizer. The card uses an ISA bus, which is no longer available on modern computers. So the best bet was to keep the existing computer and repair it versus trying to find a replacement computer with an ISA bus.

Phil Brummell, IT Director at Parkview, was able to install a new hard drive and load a fresh copy of Windows XP Pro on the system. Once that was complete, InTelemed went on-site to load the new software, set up the interface card, program the system, and perform a complete PM on the digitizer and create a new calibration file. This takes several hours and requires specialized tools such as laser calibration meters, calibrated test films, a volt meter and oscilloscope.

As one of the top Kodak/Lumisys digitizer repair companies in the world, InTelemed was easily able to bring the system to life and put an old workhorse back to work. The now 15 year old digitizer still meets all ACR standard for primary diagnostic interpretation, and is used to prior films to Parkview's radiologist for comparison against current CR images.