by
Carol Ko, Staff Writer | February 12, 2013
From the January/February 2013 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
The high-stress situations encountered by OR and ED staff is exacerbated when wireless connectivity fails during a critical moment. This may mean a staffer needs to physically carry out the duties that were expected from the installed technology. “It’s kind of like having to do a layover on a flight,” said Ising. “If I have to go to Boston, a direct flight is the best way to go. I hate having a layover that costs extra and takes longer.” However, Ising qualifies this by adding that these complaints are minor compared to where the industry was even a few years ago: “We’re dealing with this world where the expectations have been raised and elevated to way past what we used to be.”
MinXRad owner and founder Bob Burbury, whose company refurbishes ambulatory X-rays used by mobile diagnostic service companies, expects to see greater improvement in wireless functionality and weight reduction. In his market, technicians “carry 100 to150 pounds from place to place. DR machines are especially heavy because you’re carrying everything – the laptop, the plate and all the cords.” He predicts that as manufacturers improve on their previous models, “you’re going to start seeing machines that are battery powered.”
Wear and Tear
In an increasingly challenging financial climate, it’s no surprise that many hospitals and facilities want to get more out of their existing resources and stretch their budgets further. To that end, manufacturers now offer shared detectors meant to be used interchangeably across a range of X-ray machines makes and models. This option is particularly attractive to budget-conscious facilities that want to enjoy the benefits of DR without having to replace entire rooms. Some vendors offer upgrades that can work with many existing systems, while others offer upgrades meant for their own brand.
“Finding ways to make portables digital is undoubtedly the way of the future,” says Steve Walsh, president of Eastern Diagnostic Imaging. “The latest generation of flat panel portables detect the X-ray image not through a cord or a computer, but through the X-ray beam itself, meaning it can be used anywhere with any apparatus.”
However, in many portable X-ray markets, digital detectors see a lot of abuse. Rob Fabrizio, director of marketing and product development of the digital X-ray division at Fujifilm, explains, “Portable exams are the harshest imaging exams of the hospital. They’re time-critical and they are in the ED or OR where staff is very rushed. Technicians aren’t going to worry about whether or not a detector get body fluids on it or whether they drop it – their main concern is getting the image quickly.” Dropping and damaging a detector incurs significant expense for the hospital, since detectors constitute the most expensive part of the machine.
