Uwe W. Engelmann PhD, Presenter: Nothing to Disclose

Heiko Muench MS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Andre Nicolai Schroeter MS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Robert Leonard Eilers, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Henrik Olesen MS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

J. Moller Jensen, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Tilman Schweitzer MS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Katharina Christoph MS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Hans-Peter Meinzer, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

et al, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

The goal of this project was the establishment of a teleradiology network which includes all hospitals of the island of greenland.

A star-like network architecture has been created. Fifteen district hospitals produce computed radiographs which are sent to a local teleradiology gateway (TR-GW) using DICOM protocol. The TRGWs are the key components in this network. All incoming images are automatically transferred to a teleradiology gateway in Dronning Ingrid's Hospital in Nuuk. This gateway is connected to the central PACS and RIS which hold all image data and reports for the whole of Greenland. Thus, all images are transferred to the central PACS system and information about the produced studies are stored in the RIS as well. The external teleradiology gateways have several tasks. They store the locally produced images in a local database. If transmission to the central gateway is interrupted, the external gateways continue the interrupted transfer automatically when the network is up again. All images of a DICOM association are kept together. Furthermore, the gateway has a built-in webserver which provides all stored images to the local network in the hospital. When a new study arrives at a teleradiology gateway, it retrieves the meta information of other existing studies of the same patient from the central teleradiology gateway.

All authorised users have access to all images and reports created of Greenland. The teleradiology solution is seamlessly integrated into the PACS/RIS systems and the user can access and display images from the context of the electronic patient record or directly via the image webserver. Single-sign-on and ticket mechanisms prevent that the user has to log into each information system separately.

The requirements of the project have been met. All images of a DICOM association are kept together by means of different transmission strategies and recovery procedures. This protects the system against network interruptions and data loss.

It is possible to establish reliable blackbox solutions to transmit images and reports over unreliable networks over long distances, thus supporting medical care for people in inaccessible regions.

Engelmann, U, Muench, H, Schroeter, A, Eilers, R, Olesen, H, Moller Jensen, J, Schweitzer, T, Christoph, K, Meinzer, H, et al, , The Teleradiology Network of Greenland.  Radiological Society of North America 2006 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, November 26 - December 1, 2006 ,Chicago IL. http://archive.rsna.org/2006/4437850.html