OREANDA-NEWS. Long wait times, disorganized data, slow results and anxiety before a procedure. Often, these pain points muddle the healthcare process for clinicians and patients. Today at the Radiological Society of North America (#RSNA14) annual meeting, GE Healthcare (NYSE: GE) has unveiled new technologies to address these issues – enabling more accurate patient data sharing and diagnosis; enhancing workflow and productivity for the clinician; and making the patient experience faster and more comfortable.

New imaging workflow functionality allows healthcare providers to access consolidated patient histories while sharing workloads across hospitals. Adoption of GE Healthcare’s new web-based Cross-Enterprise Reporting1 capability provides clinicians with tools like voice recognition while giving them the ability to make a diagnosis anywhere with internet access.

The new Cross-Enterprise Display capability gives radiologists a consolidated view of a patient’s medical history – including all relevant prior images – to help make a more informed diagnosis. When combined, these new capabilities help to improve patient care by helping to reduce duplicate scans and create more collaborative care networks.

GE Healthcare is showcasing clinician-inspired upgrades to its acclaimed LOGIQ E9 and LOGIQ S7 ultrasound systems that assist with everyday throughput and imaging challenges. These upgrades include improved image quality, new transducers and automated tools that help enhance exam productivity and speed with new design features that can help image efficiently and comfortably.

“We asked clinicians who use these technologies every day to tell us what they need, and we designed upgrades that are cost-effective and that give them more time, productivity and clinical confidence,” said Brian McEathron, general manager of General Imaging Ultrasound for GE Healthcare. “These upgrades put GE’s latest imaging technology in their hands without requiring a system replacement.”

GE Healthcare’s latest digital radiography system, the Optima* XR646 handles larger patients like never before. The rugged table can lift patients up to 705 pounds with unlimited, or off-access, capacity. It moves in eight different directions and drops as low as 50 centimeters off the floor for easy access. Advanced features such as auto-tracking capability and auto image paste2 at the wallstand, a 510(k) pending advanced application, help increase productivity. The new touch-screen monitor produces images in less than three seconds allowing technologists to deliver fast results.

“The Optima XR646 is designed to simplify, shorten and improve ease of use for X-ray technologists during every step of an exam,” said Michelle Edler, general manager of radiology and fluoroscopy for GE’s Detection & Guidance Solutions business. “In addition to improving the user experience, the Optima XR646 helps overcome the daily imaging challenges to give clinicians the capability and confidence needed to make a quick and accurate diagnosis.”

GE Healthcare helps increase clinical confidence now and in the future with the new Discovery* XR656 Plus, a premium digital radiographic system equipped with advanced applications VolumeRAD* and Dual Energy. These clinical applications have gained widespread global acceptance with 45 published clinical papers and can be used for lung nodule detection in the United States.

A fully automated overhead tube positioning and tracking system speeds up workflow over traditional manual tracking. Automated image pasting software available at the wallstand or table offers additional productivity. A new bariatric table capable of handling patients up to 705 pounds moves in multiple directions for great flexibility in imaging patients.

The Optima XR646 and Discovery XR656 Plus are powered by GE Healthcare’s durable next-generation FlashPad wireless detector designed to meet clinical x-ray needs without compromise.