Cost-effectiveness and ROI – both short and long-term – are vital factors when selecting an effective storage system.
Disaster recovery programs for health systems require immense data redundancy, pushing storage capacity needs – and costs – even higher.
Like other healthcare facilities, Edmonton, Alberta’s Capital Health Authority (CHA) had to respond to this dual challenge of cost and capacity. It is doing so by moving from a manual, film-based diagnostic imaging system to an online digital system.
Specifically, CHA has selected NetStorager GSX 2400 – an intelligent storage and data management product from Edmonton-based Yotta Yotta Inc. – for a multi-site Picture and Archival Communication Systems (PACS) implementation.
The PACS network will eventually connect four area hospitals, allowing CHA to store and actively share magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and benefit from real time disaster recovery.
“While much of our work has been in the defense and aerospace sectors, NetStorager can be used as effectively in the healthcare space – and the CHA project demonstrates this,” said Wayne Karpoff, chief technology officer, Yotta Yotta.
Distributed storage
If diagnostic imaging just involved archiving images for one-time use, storage could be purchased incrementally as the need arose.
But in multi-site facilities such as CHA other factors come into play. Images are used by practitioners in different departments at geographically separated facilities. Radiologists need to be able to remotely access and review images and collaborate on these with colleagues.
That’s a capability the CHA hopes to put in place by deploying NetStorager.
Capital Health will use the system to implement a distributed storage system for two of its largest facilities: the University Hospital and Royal Alexandria Hospital.
This project allows the two hospitals to test a new way of storing patient information online. “Now specialists will be able to view complex diagnostics across hospitals faster and more effectively,” said Joanna Pawlyshyn, Chief Operating Officer, Royal Alexandra Hospital. According to Yotta Yotta, expected benefits include:
