Teleradiology has been a significant boon to the medical community and health care. The recent pandemic has revealed two fundamental truths about health care: the sobering reality that we are frighteningly vulnerable as a population to new diseases that can spread rapidly and overwhelm our healthcare systems, however advanced they may be. But also in parallel, it has shown that we in the healthcare system also possess the tools needed to rapidly respond to such a crisis – one such tool is teleradiology, which has been at the forefront of this revolution.
We all know that radiology has been exceptional in helping medical professionals get into the depth of a prevailing medical condition of a patient by capturing images of the internal body. With less than 15,000 radiologists in our country serving a population of approximately 1.5 billion people, the need for increasing the reach and capacity of our existing radiologists is paramount. However, today, technology has helped more and more people gain access to this service quickly through teleradiology. In short, it is helping medical professionals towards better healthcare delivery, decreasing the turnaround times for getting medical reports, and assisting diagnose and treat patients promptly.
Access to Primary Healthcare with Teleradiology
Teleradiology has greatly benefited patients living in rural areas, who often have limited access to quality care. Similarly, it has benefited people with serious injuries or illnesses who need immediate diagnostic reports for further medication. Let us explore the areas where teleradiology assists in providing enhanced healthcare delivery.
1. Critical cases
Today, India is among the trauma capital of the world due to its high population density and road traffic. As per the data published by the Indian Society for Trauma and Acute Care, road-traffic incidents in India are increasing at an annual rate of 3%. Further, emergency conditions such as stroke and cardiovascular disease are on the rise. In these situations, every second counts in getting a correct diagnosis, but the radiologist may not be immediately available. Instantly bringing images to a remote expert radiologist through teleradiology can provide immediate diagnostic access necessary for diagnosing critical elements such as bleeding in the brain or arterial blockages that prevent oxygen supply to vital structures. These small steps taken towards a nationwide network for immediate quality diagnosis of stroke and trauma can transform our country’s health.
2. AI implementation
The most significant paradigm shift in healthcare delivery is the integration of artificial intelligence algorithms into the workflow in order to mitigate physician shortages. Radiology will benefit most significantly because it has the greatest need for AI algorithms. Deployment of such diagnostic algorithms into teleradiology workflow will provide the most excellent magnifying effect by allowing the benefits of these algorithms to be realized at a national or global level.
3. Remote accessibility
70% of India’s population lives in its villages, and correspondingly the majority of India is deprived of access to quality radiology diagnostics, given that radiologists overwhelmingly reside in metros and larger cities today. The National Digital Health Mission provides an infrastructure and vision that can translate this into access to quality radiology diagnostics for the population that needs it the most. Teleradiology will be unleashed through large-scale deployment initiatives by allowing communities access to diagnostic imaging services remotely.
4. Subspecialty medicine
As standards of sub-specialist healthcare, such as cardiology, orthopedics, neurology and oncology, rise across the country, there needs to be a corresponding supply of expert radiologists to support these sub-specialties and provide a high-quality diagnosis. However, there is a significant shortage of subspecialty radiologists in India. In this resource-constrained scenario, teleradiology provides the opportunity to extend the reach of these few subspecialists and allow them to deliver quality diagnostic services across the country to a much larger population than they otherwise could.
Leverage Prodigi for Efficient and Reliable Teleradiology Services
Prodigi is a leading teleradiology service platform that provides high-quality radiology reports. We have world-class artificial intelligence software and a team of radiology experts to handle a variety of cases, including emergency reporting, regular and elective cases, and even sub-specialty diagnoses.
Reap the benefits of teleradiology by contacting us at communication@5cnetwork.com.
