2. Data accessibility
As patients work to take more control of their healthcare journey, they are stymied without access to consumer-friendly resources, information, and tools needed to properly manage their care. Given the reach of the Internet and advanced digital technology, one would think that it would be easy for patients and physicians to manage clinical images. However, the healthcare system has historically lacked a way to manage the flow of medical images and associated reports from diverse locations in a secure, HIPAA-compliant manner and allow them to be accessed in a unified place. Too often, patients must bear the burden of collecting and couriering their medical records. While a vast majority of providers have moved to electronic records, many still rely on CDs, films and faxes to deliver imaging data, like mammograms, to patients. Complicating the digital exchange further for the patient is the sheer size of imaging files.

3. Interoperability between systems

At the heart of data accessibility issues is a lack of interoperability between clinical systems, as well as competitive pressures that discourage the free flow of mammograms between providers. In mammography, the applications available for image storage and retrieval have historically been manufacturer-specific at the expense of interoperability. Research has shown, however, that cloud-based models offer promise for breast imaging providers and patients in improving care at breast centers while also reducing costs.

4. Administrative burden
Hospitals and outpatient imaging centers allocate significant manpower and financial resources chasing down prior patient records, creating and mailing CDs and downloading images from discs into picture archiving and communication systems (PACS). This can also slow delivery of care for breast cancer patients and negatively affect healthcare outcomes. Adding to the administrative burden is the duplication of work that occurs when the radiologist must prepare a report addendum once the prior mammogram is received.

5. Higher associated costs
Early detection that is made possible with access to prior mammograms not only helps save lives, but also reduces medical costs, unnecessary radiation exposure, and time away from work for individual patients. Beyond the individual impact, health plans also face significant costs, largely associated with the incidence of “false positives” that require the patient to undergo further diagnostic testing, which comes at a significant cost.

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