Siemens Healthcare Unveils Two Cloud-based Solutions to Optimize Image Management and Radiology Workflow

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Siemens Healthcare (NYSE: SI), has announced two new solutions for image management and radiology workflow that will be hosted from the Siemens Healthcare Cloud Computing Center (HCCC), in Malvern, Pa. In a first of its kind strategic alliance with Dell, Round Rock, Texas, Siemens will deliver a cloud-based vendor-agnostic Image Sharing & Archiving (ISA(1)) solution. The ISA offering will be primarily hosted out of Siemens HCCC, using Dell's clinical data management software. Additionally, Siemens and Dell will securely federate their respective healthcare clouds, providing customers an additional form of redundancy for this key clinical content. The solution will help healthcare providers reduce the ongoing capital expenditure of maintaining on-site image archives. Additionally, Siemens is announcing a new implementation approach for its proven syngo Workflow radiology information system (RIS), which can be completely hosted from Siemens HCCC.(2) These solutions will be presented in Siemens booth #2423 at the Healthcare Information & Management Systems Society (HIMSS) 2012 Annual Conference and Exposition at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas, from February 20-24.

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With Siemens ISA, healthcare organizations can reduce ongoing capital expenditure that is typically incurred from the maintenance of local, on-site image archiving hardware. Modern imaging modalities generate tremendous volumes of data that can quickly outpace the growth rate of on-site storage. ISA provides the scalability to dynamically change in accordance with a facility's needs, and peace of mind with an efficient disaster recovery strategy. Additionally, the ISA solution stores imaging content in a vendor-neutral format, enabling imaging department administrators to realize a simpler data migration plan when switching to a different picture archiving and communications system (PACS) solution. Finally, the offering enables hospitals to share imaging data across specialties and departments in the enterprise – putting the images in the hands of referring physicians faster. Customers who choose the ISA solution can begin using their vendor neutral archive within three to six months of signing.

"Imaging departments face significant cost pressures and, as a result, administration must look for ways to optimize productivity while, at the same time, lower the cost of maintaining imaging archives. By turning to Siemens and Dell for these solutions, administrators can switch from being system 'maintainers' to system 'optimizers,'" said Kurt Reiff, vice president, business management, SYNGO Americas. "Helping our customers improve their value-add in the healthcare chain, achieve greater flexibility, and drive sustainable growth, are all goals of Siemens Agenda 2013 initiative, which exemplifies our commitment to help customers address the challenges of today's market."

The ISA solution is able to address the increased demand that is placed on all medical imaging specialties. As procedure volume grows in other disciplines such as cardiology, pathology and endoscopy, Siemens and Dell will provide this standards-based service to meet their needs today and tomorrow. The Siemens HCCC has been in operation more than 40 years and offers a safe, secure data center environment. The Siemens HCCC processes more than 200 million transactions per day and hosts more than 500,000 end-user devices. Dell's Unified Clinical Archive solution is also built on a long pedigree of secure, private, healthcare cloud delivery. Dell manages more than 68 million clinical studies, more than 4.7 billion diagnostic imaging objects, and supports more than 800 clinical sites in one of the world's largest cloud-based clinical archives.

"Siemens and Dell bring years of cloud computing experience to help customers solve their data management and archiving challenges while facilitating collaboration across specialties, departments and geographic boundaries," said James Coffin, PhD, Vice President and General Manager, Dell Healthcare and Life Sciences. "It's critical that every diagnostic image for a patient is available to multiple clinicians at the point of care. With this first-of-its-kind alliance, we are providing solutions that facilitate easy data retrieval and secure data sharing while simplifying IT management and maintenance for the long term."

RIS in the cloud
At HIMSS 2012, Siemens will also unveil a new approach to delivering and maintaining its syngo Workflow RIS. Siemens will again turn to its private, medical-grade HCCC and its Managed Services IT Solutions and Consulting business to help customers better predict costs and reduce capital expenditures associated with maintaining a RIS. As such, private cloud solution for syngo Workflow provides a more predictable cost environment -- particularly for hospitals already hosting other elements of their health information technology solution through the HCCC.

Because Siemens is maintaining all RIS functionality in the HCCC, the company will also be able to utilize the solutions to provide valuable national benchmark metrics accumulated from syngo Workflow users. This assessment will be provided annually to customers. These business analytics could help customers better understand how their organization is currently using syngo Workflow, identifying ways to make improvements through an examination of the current software configuration.

"Radiology practices already invest in software that helps them mine their own data to look at key performance indicators -- to judge their output -- but oftentimes the lens is solely focused on the practice, with only a vague national benchmark for comparison, and no clear strategy for ways to optimize the workflow solution that is currently in use," said Reiff. "Siemens has the opportunity to provide customers with a direct comparison, using completely de-identified information that demonstrates how they track today versus practices that are using nearly the same configuration. We can also present them with a clear strategy to achieve even stronger results."

(1)  Image Sharing & Archiving is only available in the United States.

(2)  The private cloud deployment for syngo Workflow requires VA31A Service Pack 1 (SP1). This offering is only available to U.S. based customers. syngo Workflow private cloud solution is only available in the United States.

Follow Siemens LIVE from HIMSS at www.twitter.com/siemenshealth and at www.healthworkscollective.com

The HIMSS Press kit is available at http://usa.siemens.com/PR

Launched recently, Siemens Agenda 2013 program is a two-year global initiative to further strengthen the Healthcare Sector's innovative power and competitiveness. Specific measures will be implemented in four fields of action: Innovation, Competitiveness, Regional Footprint, and People Development.

The Siemens Healthcare Sector is one of the world's largest suppliers to the healthcare industry and a trendsetter in medical imaging, laboratory diagnostics, medical information technology and hearing aids. Siemens offers its customers products and solutions for the entire range of patient care from a single source – from prevention and early detection to diagnosis, and on to treatment and aftercare. By optimizing clinical workflows for the most common diseases, Siemens also makes healthcare faster, better and more cost-effective. Siemens Healthcare employs some 51,000 employees worldwide and operates around the world. In fiscal year 2011 (to September 30), the Sector posted revenue of 12.5 billion euros and profit of around 1.3 billion euros. For further information please visit: www.siemens.com/healthcare.

SOURCE Siemens Healthcare