RIS/PACS Implementation Project for Tuscany

Integration of a computed radiography (CR) system with a combined radiology information system (RIS)/picture archiving communications system (PACS) for diagnostic image management will be installed in a Tuscany hospital digitization project, providing streamlined and improved radiology workflow of the region.

Agfa HealthCare (Mortsel, Belgium) is launching the second phase of the Tuscan Medical Technology (TMT) hospital digitization project, in which it will install its integrated radiology information system (RIS) in the hospitals of the central Tuscany region. The first phase of the project, which included the installation of Agfa's CR systems, has been for a large part successfully completed.

The central Tuscany region comprises five hospital groups (12 hospitals in total): the AO Careggi University hospital group, the AO Meyer hospital group, the ASL 10 Firenze hospital group, the ASL 4 Prato Hospital group, and the ASL 3 Pistoia hospital group. Together, they are comprised of more than 1,300 general practitioners and 180 pediatricians who perform more than 1,300,000 examinations per year. The first and second phases of the TMT project (which is part of the larger IDIT project [Informatizzazione della Diagnostica di Immagine in Toscana]) are part of a contract partnership between Agfa HealthCare and Area Vasta Centro, the central health region in Tuscany. The contract with Agfa HealthCare was signed in the second half of January 2006.

For the TMT project, Agfa HealthCare formed a temporary consortium, called the Raggruppamento Temporaneo d'Impresa (RTI), to satisfy the requirements of the tender. The consortium aims to improve the delivery of diagnostic imaging services in the region. By linking their radiology departments, the hospitals of the area will be able to share data and imaging across the different healthcare organizations, in this manner improving the quality of their service and the delivery of patient care.

The TMT project is one of the most important RIS/PACS projects in Europe, with a total tender amount of 45 million Euros. The next phase of the project, in which Agfa HealthCare will install its web-based RIS in the 12 hospitals of the region, is now beginning. The RIS, when implemented and fully integrated to the hospitals' PACS, will greatly enhance patient and exam workflow and permit authorized users to access information available anywhere and at any time.

In the final phase of the project, which is currently planned for July 2008, all 12 hospitals of the Area Vasta Centro region will be linked. This will allow for the entire radiology workflow to be streamlined and improved. As a result, the clinicians in the region will get better information in a faster timeframe, allowing for better patient care.



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