adiology Order Entry : Features and erformance Requirements

m c p adiology has benefited from the rogress in information technolgy perhaps more than any other edical specialty. Stunning rogress has been made in the way hat images are created, stored, nd retrieved. These advances ave brought imaging ever closer o the core of medical practice nd decision making. However, systems to manage orkflow, ensure patient safety, ptimize device and modality utiization, and improve business efciency remain relatively primiive. Perhaps the inattention to hese functions is because they are ess impressive and glamorous han the new methods of seeing he body. However, the rapid rowth of high-tech imaging has ed to increasing appreciation of he need to conserve resources. It as been our impression that inormation technology vendors are elatively unaware of the scope of hese needs and how to satisfy hem within the context of comon radiology and medical pracice. In this column, we describe the eatures that we think an elecronic order-entry system should ave. Some of these are incorpoated in a prototype system develped at and already functioning n our institution. Other features re awaiting additional developent, and still others are more ccurately described as wishes ather than plans. We hope that thers will be stimulated to do the ame, so that information techology vendors will understand he need. t ENERAL REQUIREMENTS