In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, the world of medical imaging was mobilized, both in terms of diagnosis and care pathways.
Diagnostic studies, reinforcement of teleradiology and social distancing, prediction of the evolution of the disease… The reactivity of the editors has been salutary during this health crisis.
An ecosystem promoting social distancing
To strengthen its medical imaging offer, Evolucare has developed connected modules that were synchronized with the Covid-19 crisis.
The first module, concerning patient appointment scheduling, is 100% web-based and multi-platform. Without any phone call or account creation, the patient chooses the day and time of his visit via an icon on the specialist’s website. “This module accelerates the procedure and avoids the telephone waits that are often too long and a source of patient loss. The module also frees up the medical secretary’s time,” says Lionel Ribière – Product Manager at Evolucare. “The appointment is then confirmed by email/sms and a QR code is issued to the patient for his or her visit to the office. »
This QR Code is an identifier that allows the patient to present himself directly on the Evolucare docking stations, installed at the entrance of imaging practices, and which constitute the second module of the editor. Thus, the patient himself at the reception desk, without going through the counter. “Even if the staff is protected by a Plexiglas window, waiting peaks increase the risk of contamination. The kiosk makes reception more fluid within the practices, while maintaining social distancing. “, explains Lionel Ribière.
At the end of the visit, the reports can be retrieved via the terminal or a webcast. This, once again, makes it possible to reduce waiting room attendance and maintain the necessary social distancing. By reinforcing the patient’s autonomy over this administrative management, Evolucare frees up considerable time for radiology secretaries.
The third module, for the radiologist, is a mobile application – spread over 4 widgets – assisting the radiologist on the move. “He can manage his schedule and progress list, but also view the images produced and perform digital interpretations from his smartphone,” describes Lionel Ribière. “A chat module is available to communicate with his staff. We have also integrated a practice management tool (turnover, comparisons, number of patients/voice dictations). And in this time of crisis, this module proves to be an additional ally for the radiologist. »
A medical database to understand coronavirus
Recent medical experience has shown that chest CT scans provide a better diagnosis of Covid-19. This discovery gave impetus to a partnership between the Société Francophone de Radiologie and the publisher NEHS DIGITAL, in order to provide a database – FIDAC – to share and study the pulmonary signs detected on infected patients.
The purpose of this anonymized test report is to promote research to strengthen the fight against coronavirus. “This is a national initiative that all of our employees want to support our customers in the best possible way,” emphasizes Patrick Mallea – Director of R&D and Product Development at NEHS DIGITAL. “Radiologists have a major role to play in understanding this virus and its consequences on the respiratory tract of infected people. »
The objective of FIDAC is to bring all the voluntary health establishments in this nationwide collection, including the CHU of Nîmes, the GHEF (Grand Hôpital de l’Est Francilien), or the GHT Artois. “After the time of the collection will come the time to work on these data, the knowledge and the solutions that they will bring. “Patrick Mallea concludes. More than 50 establishments have already mobilized in a few weeks to contribute their contribution to the project.
Predicting the evolution of the coronavirus
Based on chest scans, the start-up Visible Patient provides a virtual 3D copy of the images transmitted by the surgeon. “We create a digital clone of the patient, with organ contours and pathological structures, in order to prepare the surgical procedure. “, explains Luc Soler, President of Visible Patient.
“The 3D modeling of the lungs allows us to obtain a new severity index, estimating the functional volume, whether healthy or diseased, of the Covid-19 patient. We were able to correlate the condition of 40 patients over 7 days with this new severity index. “The elements detected in the lung allow us to know the evolution of the disease. The elements detected in the lung allow us to know the evolution of the disease. Thus, the nursing staff knows whether or not it is necessary to intubate a patient. »
In order to confirm the potential of this new severity diagnosis, the Grand Est region will co-finance a multicenter study, in two phases, on three hospital sites: the Strasbourg University Hospital, the GHRMSA in Mulhouse and the Nancy University Hospital. One, retrospective, will be carried out on 500 patient files, and the second, prospective, on 500 other files to demonstrate that the tool is a reliable, rapid and predictive test.
Reinforcement of the imaging offer
Public purchasing groups, which are now the pivotal point in the purchasing process for healthcare institutions, must also meet this health challenge.
The Union des Groupements d’Achats Publics (UGAP) is fully in line with this movement by developing an e-health offer that covers all the uses involved in the life cycle of a medical image. From production rationalized by a high-performance RIS and adapted X-ray dose management, through its visualization, post-processing, storage in a PACS or VNA, to its use in the patient file, the medical image is everywhere and follows the patient through the care process.
It is this entire medical image lifecycle that UGAP addresses today through a “use” market where 31 generic uses have been defined to cover the needs of healthcare institutions. This market is led by a single integrator, the Compagnie Française d’Informatique (CFI), whose role is to carry out several missions: on the one hand, the constitution and enrichment of a panel of expert and reliable partners responding to one or more uses, falling within the framework of generic uses defined to the market, and on the other hand, to ensure that the use expected by the end user is indeed there.
To do this, CFI must develop, lead and coordinate cooperation between partners in order to find the best synergies to meet the needs of the healthcare establishment. To succeed in its mission, the UGAP market gives it a tremendous asset: the completeness of the value chain.
Isaac Tarek
June 2020 – SANTEXPO
