FUJIFILM Medical Systems USA, Inc. has announced the availability of a new Synapse-based off-site medical archiving service. This new managed PACS solution provides safe, secure, off-site storage of radiology data with unlimited 24/7 access and quick and complete recovery in the event of a disaster. Unlike the majority of solutions in the marketplace, Fuji utilizes spinning disk technology (RAID), so users will benefit from faster access to data so that they can restore their systems as quickly as possible.

This comprehensive service was designed to provide the security, reliability and ease-of-use demanded by today's HIPPA-influenced healthcare environment. Based on Fuji's Synapse© technology, this archiving service enables Fuji's PACS customers to take full advantage of this offering by making a simple system configuration change. Users have the ability to back-up the entire system, not just the DICOM images, and, if a study is unavailable locally for any reason, Synapse will automatically retrieve a copy from the data center. Furthermore, the Synapse-based design ensures that facilities with only a single location or limited IT resources can still benefit from the same level of confidence and compliance as larger institutions.

"Fuji provides a tailored solution that readily meets both the IT and financial needs of a rural facility such as ours," said Don Rogers, Director of Radiology for Graham Regional Medical Center, Graham, Texas. "The solution will enable us to be assured that we will have safe, secure copies of all of our clinical studies and PACS data, not just images. And their pay-per-stored exam model with unlimited retrieval access to data ensures it's affordable," he said.

Fuji expects that mammography will be another area that will benefit from this new offering, since the service provides a cost-effective way to have secure, long term storage of images. The service is positioned to be an attractive add-on to the company's recently approved Fuji Computed Radiography for Mammography (FCRm) digital mammography system.

"With the adoption of digital mammography increasing, we expect that this managed service will be an attractive option for the many dedicated mammography facilities that don't have their own IT departments," explained Bob Cooke, Fuji's Executive Director of Marketing and Product Management. "Due to the retention requirements and the large data sizes of mammography studies, having secure, long-term storage of these images is critical."

Another benefit is the use of Fuji's unique AON^TM (Access Over Network) compression that provides for the availability of even the largest studies within seconds. Original versions (lossless compressed) of images are stored for the legal lifetime of a study, and clinical versions (lossy wavelet compressed) can be utilized for quick access for comparisons. This compression approach can help customers achieve high image quality and a reduced requirement for on-site storage.

Fuji's off-site Synapse-based medical archiving service is currently commercially available.

About FUJIFILM Medical Systems USA, Inc.
As one of the Fuji Photo Film family of companies with 70 years of imaging experience and almost $25 billion in sales, FUJIFILM Medical Systems is a leading provider of diagnostic imaging products and network systems to meet the needs of healthcare facilities today and well into the future. Fuji's Synapse© PACS (picture archiving and communications system) provides a seamless solution for managing, storing and distributing images and information throughout the entire healthcare enterprise. Its Web integrated design and hardware-independence provide a technological infrastructure and deployment model that can be expanded upon in a myriad of ways to adapt to evolving technologies. Fuji is headquartered in Stamford, CT.