Lithgow residents are benefitting from a state-of-the-art medical imaging system designed to provide clinicians with real-time access to x-rays, CT scans, MRIs, nuclear medicine scans and ultrasounds performed in public hospitals.
The new Radiology Information System and Picture Archiving and Communication System (RIS-PACS) is live at several NSW hospitals within Western Sydney and Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health Districts.
The system enables clinicians to access complete imaging histories, comparison images and reports, ensuring that a patient’s journey can be tracked from image request through to diagnosis – storing key information, digital images and results for instant access by hospital-based treating teams.
Chief Radiographer at Lithgow Hospital, Michelle Bostock said RIS-PACS will allow continuity of care and quicker specialist reviews.
“When critically ill patients return home from large city hospitals, we will now be able to view and compare their images locally,” she said.
With up to 2,500 imaging examinations performed at Lithgow Hospital each month, the benefits of the RIS-PACS system will be felt by many in the local community.
“RIS-PACS will support our people to enhance the excellent patient-focused service provided by the Imaging Department at Lithgow Hospital,” Ms Bostock said.
The introduction of RIS-PACS at Lithgow Hospital is part of a state-wide program delivering streamlined medical imaging services across NSW. It’s currently being deployed at Ryde, Hornsby Ku-ring-gai, Mona Value and Royal North Shore Hospitals with Northern NSW and Mid North Coast local health districts on schedule for the end of the year.
