IBM Assists Delivery of Smarter Healthcare with Web-Based "Radiology Theatre"

IBM recently announced its research project with Brigham and Women's Hospital of Boston to create an online "radiology theatre." Using these theatres, medical experts can review test data of patients and have discussions simultaneously using a browser interface.

 

At the core of the project is a secure Web site which allows medical experts at Brigham and Women's Hospital to make rounds virtually irrespective of their location. CT scans, MRIs, EKGs and other medical test data are uploaded on the site, and medical experts can analyze them through live streaming audio/video over the Web. They also have the option to whiteboard over the Web page as well as modify patient records.

 

The secure Web site allows simultaneous login of a group of doctors to review and analyze a patient's test reports. In addition, simultaneous discussions, tagging and sharing of information can be performed using the virtual theatre instead of the conventional way of running through papers and then charting results.

 

"The medical community is at a crossroads. We realize the effectiveness of individualized medicine but the increasing volume of data stored in multiple electronic medical record systems makes it progressively harder to correctly select the information required for each patient care episode as well as share that information with other physicians or care providers. We see the Radiology Theatre as an electronic metaphor of how to deal with the explosion of information," said Dr. Francine Jacobson, thoracic radiologist at Brigham and Women's and assistant professor, Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School.

 

Software for the Radiology Theatre is built on open Web standards and requires only a standard Web browser. A medical expert can collaborate with colleagues using a laptop, mobile device, or other desktop from any location.

 

"Our focus in building the Radiology Theatre was to connect existing visual and clinical information so experts at Brigham and Women's Hospital could make faster, better decisions together," said Rod Smith, vice president, IBM (News - Alert) emerging technologies

 

IBM researchers have also emerged with a technology called Blue Spruce, which is a combination of Web components such as data mashups, high-definition video, audio and graphics which allows multiple users to co-browse and see each others' changes.