Italian patients control their own diagnostic images and data
Carestream’s new patient portal, MyVue, recently successfully completed its practice run in Europe at Italy’s Delta Hospital in Lagosanto.
MyVue is the first portal to allow secure transmission of sensitive patient data in line with privacy regulations. After examination a patient does not need to return to hospital, but instead can await results and images at home. Dr Giorgio Benea, radiologist at the Delta Hospital, explained that since MyVue was installed in early September last year, 455 patients have been involved and he has received direct patient feedback about the portal via a telephone survey, to which each patient is requested to respond about 20 days after admission. ‘More than ninety percent of patients are very satisfied with MyVue and the reactions of doctors involved with the patient portal have also been extremely positive,’ he confirmed.
Security encryption
‘Patients who take part in the patient portal can not only view their images and read the results in any location with internet access, but also store them on their own computers and share them with whoever they wish – their physicians and specialists as well as family and friends – the data is owned by the patients,’ he explained. The only important prerequisite is the safe transmission of the data to its owners without access by third parties. Carestream ensures this through its security encryption. To use MyVue the patient is initially sent an e-mail with a temporary password that enables log-on to the portal. S/he then adds a personal password, which is only valid when combined with their personal e-mail address. If the patient wants to share his/her data with someone, s/he first sends the guest an invitation by e-mail. The guest can then log on to the system by activating a link and then view the chosen data. The owner of the images determines the length of time as well as the amount of data that s/he wants to make accessible to the guest.
Accessibility
The key benefit: Access to MyVue is possible via any browser and any type of device, be it iPad, laptop or PC. Thus the concept of a patient who can control his or her data anywhere in the world has become a reality. The new portal not only helps to avoid repeat examinations but also provides an even bigger savings potential because neither CD nor DVD burning is necessary or hard copy printing. ‘As the patient is in charge of the transmission of his images the workflow becomes more structured and effective and there’s less strain on staff and budgetary capacities in the imaging departments,’ Dr Benea pointed out. Although the professor cannot yet put the exact savings potential into figures, he is certain that the acquisition costs of hard- and software will have been amortised within a very short period.
PROFILE
Following medical and radiology studies in Ferrara, Italy, Professor Giorgio Benea MD worked as a registrar at the S. Anna Hospital, later heading its whole body CT and vascular and interventional radiology departments. Since 1995, he has directed the Department for Clinical, Radiological and Interventional Radiology for the Azienda USL Ferrara hospitals Argenta-Portomaggiore, Comacchio, Copparo, and Lagosanto. A professor at the Medical and Surgical Faculty, University of Ferrara, Dr Benea is also an Italian Society of Medical Radiology (SIRM) for IT delegate.
25.02.2013
