Vendor neutral archiving (VNA) has been a critical resource for clinicians involved in viewing medical images. Without the ease at which VNA allows clinicians to view medical images, patients would not receive as high quality of care.
Before VNA came along, PACS were often departmentally implemented, which meant viewing images from other departments often came with great difficulty at most and an inconvenience at the least. The procedure often involved a clinician logging in to a separate system with every image needed. Whether it was cardiology, oncology, pathology – any department’s disparate PACS required logging into, adding a step in the workflow that wasn’t’ needed.
Through utilizing VNA, PACS and the workstation, or viewer, are essentially decoupled. When properly configured, the archival layer is decoupled through the development of an application engine. This means that all DICOM-formatted data is available without the usual roadblocks.
True VNA
A distinction has to be made between VNA and “true” VNA, because the approach from one vendor to the other can be quite different. In fact, some healthcare providers adopt a VNA solution and find out after the fact that it doesn’t match up to what they really needed. Thus, “true” VNA has come into play.
When you partner with the right vendor, you’ll get solutions that offer seamless image storing and archiving capabilities across any PACS. If you’re in the market for a VNA solution, check with your final list of potential providers if they provide the following items:
- ADT updates to image files stored in the archive
- Ability to store an entire suite of DICOM SOP classes
- Objects available in a non-proprietary format
- Context management
- Inclusive DICOM query/retrieve specification at all information levels
These items are what typify “true” VNA and make it a more appropriate solution for your imaging needs.
Partner With a Quality Vendor
At OffSite Image Management, we have years of experience offering a comprehensive list of imaging solutions for all types of healthcare providers, from large hospitals to rural clinics and just about everything in between.
Our imaging solutions are positioned to ease workflow, reduce reliance on on-site management, provide data backup and much more. Our foundation is in archiving services, so even though we’ve branched out into several other areas, including teleradiology, PACS, mammography and others, we still provide our clients VNA solutions that give them more visibility, access and sharing solutions.
For more information, visit our website and see how we differ from other radiology solution providers.