Writing on the wall...

Researchers from microsoft and the Carnegie mellon University presented a prototype called the Omnitouch. This device, mounted on the shoulder of the user, allows the user to display a keypad on any surface in front of him or her. So tables, walls and even ga hand can be used for interaction both typing and swiping. They still have to make it smaller but it looks promising to deliver easy to use and versatile keypads. As demonstrated in youtube movies it even supports multi-touch.

Health Informatics Congress 2012

BCS and The Chartered Institute for IT have announced the dates of next year's Health Informatics Congress (HC2012), which will be held at the Business Design Centre in London, England.

The conference, which will run from May 2-3, will feature a range of high profile speakers from across the globe, who will discuss the latest developments in health informatics.

Innovation Think Tank invitation for Students

The future of Healthcare- Interdisciplinary project team contest 2011/2012

Chief Technology Office and Innovation Think Tank at Siemens Healthcare, Germany, invites you to participate in the “The Future of Healthcare- Interdisciplinary project team contest” with a focus on multidisciplinary ideas on the effects of technological advances and changes in society on today’s global healthcare systems. The top 10 finalists will be invited to a maximum period of three months innovation camp at Siemens Healthcare .

A total of 15.000 Euros will be awarded and distributed among the finalists based on an evaluation of the innovation camp outcomes by the jury. Depending on the scale implementation of the final outcomes, a variable compensation will be offered to the finalists at the end of the program. Cost of travelling and accommodation along with a stipend will be covered by Siemens.
Proposal submission deadline 7th November 2011

More info on the Siemens website

Practice Bronchoscopy on iPad or iPhone

The school of respirology of the VUmc in Amsterdam, the Netherlands developed Broncho App, an app for doctors and students to practice bronchoscopy on iPad or iPhone.

eHealth Benchmarking III Final Report

Already somewhat older, published in May 2011, but still a very relavant publication. The

eHealth Benchmarking III Final Report

from the EuropeanUnion.

This study provides an overview of how Europe's acute hospitals use eHealth. It offers empirical evidence from hospital's Chief Information Officers and it gives a sense of the attitudes and motivations of Medical Directors.

It is interesting to compare the status of different countries and to assess where your own hospital IT level is at compared to the National and International average. The report clearly shows a large potential for improvement and investment in Medical Imaging Informatics in the European Union.

Even going through the report quickly only scanning the graphs (there's plenty of them) is very insightfull.

Personal 3D viewer

Apparently it is going to be available somewhere this year, the personal 3D viewer by Sony. A headset with 2d and 3d display capability and dolby 5.1 sound. Perhaps also something for medical advanced visualisation although the prize is a bit high at 800 dollar.

Visualization table for collaborative viewing of 3D datasets

Check out the Sectra Visualization Table. I've played around with it at a conference. Basically, it is a large iPad showing the three-dimensional visualization of your CT or MR dataset. My guess is that the applications can primarily be found in education and teaching. The table works intuitive and after some minor instruction it is very simple to play around with. Great tool that looked like just a gadget in the beginning but clinical applications are starting to be found.

Cloud Computing in Imaging Informatics

Also from the HealthImaging Virtual Conference a nice presentation on Cloud Computing in Imaging Informatics.

During this presentation Dr. Shrestha indicates the following issues as being the big issues facing Imaging Informatics:

1) Imaging Overload
2) Pay for Performance
3) Clinical Validation
4) System Integration
5) Reforming the Imaging Report
6) Image Sharing

The question he addresses based on these issues is "Is 'Cloud' the big saver?"

IHE TCE profile in combination with Mirc

A couple of weeks ago we threw a setup together to demonstrate the TCE profile for setting up teaching files.
By combining a TCE Selector and Mirc (both to be obtained from the RSNA Mirc wiki) together with KPacs ( free PACS archive and viewer) running on a couple of simple PCs we got a easy setup for making teaching files. From the PACS viewer a direct DICOM send can be done to the locally installed TCE selector which allows additional information entry in a pop-up. Subsequently, the data is tranfered to the Mirc system and instantly available in the teaching file.

Top 10 Health IT Advances You Should Know About

Great presentation at the HealthImaging Virtual Conference Series on Health IT Advances you should know about that will dictate the health IT direction for the next 5 to 10 years.
You can listen to this presentation for free by just subscribing through the HealthImaging website.

Top 10 Health IT Advances You Should Know About :

1. Virtualization / Cloud computing
2. Mobility applications / Mobile devices
3. Natural Language Processing
4. Semantic Interoperability
5. Server Oriented Architectures (SOA)
6. Business Process Management (BPM)
7. Business Intelligence (BI)
8. Vendor Neutral Archiving (VNA)
9. Unified Communications
10. Real Time Locating Systems (RTLS)

PACS History overview

Want to know more about PACS history? Check out the following publications, all in European Journal of Radiology 78(2011):

1. Short History of PACS (Part I: USA), H.K. Huang
2. Short History of PACS (Part II: Europe), Heinz U. Lemke
3. History of PACS in Asia, Kiyonari Inamura, Jong Hyo Kim

Communication in PACS

Although social media is integrated into day to day life, use in healthcare is still limited. Currently a trend can be observed towards communication within the PACS environment using digital aids. These systems allow easy communication between radiologists and resident and/or radiological technicians. Furthermore messages can be posted and availability is instantly seen. Check for example the software Primordial is marketing in combination with the Philips PACS.

New blog on Medical Imaging Informatics

This new blog will cover Medical imaging informatics in the broadest sense. Ranging from HIS and RIS to advanced visualization I will be covering conference sessions, publications, scientific research and scientific papers.