Teleradiology- Easy Accessibility of Radiological Services for Diagnosis- Our Experience

Diagnostic imaging is one of the most revolutionary innovations in the medical world. It has revolutionized how physicians and patients view health and diseases. However, the dearth of radiologists to read these images has been an impending problem worldwide. Digitization of medical images in standard Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) format and the seamless integration of imaging modalities through the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) has enabled easy acquisition and transfer of images across networks for viewing, enabling the teleradiology platform for reporting by radiologists from anywhere. CARE was one of the first to adopt this technology through a public private partnership model with district hospital, Mahabubnagar in 2001. Over the last 18 years, we are connected to district hospitals, private centres across India, small sized hospitals and also to some international diagnostic centres in Nigeria and Iraq. This paper highlights our experiences in Teleradiology across district hospitals, private centres and international centres and also showcases the turnaround time for reporting routine and emergency cases through this mode of technology.