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The introduction of PACS has significantly improved reporting times and productivity in a large teaching hospital despite an increase in workload, UK researchers say. They evaluated the system's impact in a five-year audit of the radiology department of St Georges Hospital NHS trust in London - from two years prior to its introduction to three years following.

The group reported a 30 per cent increase in films from 2002 to 2006, from 11,531 per month to 15,057 per month. However, the corresponding increase in the number of radiologists over this period was just 15 per cent.

Despite this imbalance they found that the reporting time - defined as the time taken from patient registration to report availability - fell significantly, from 6.8 to five days for plain films and from 4.1 to 3.1 days for other modalities. The number of reports issued per radiologist increased by 18 per cent, from 337 films per month to 407.

The authors noted: "Prior to PACS productivity was decreasing and reporting times were stable or increasing. Both these deteriorating trends have been reversed post-PACS."

They concluded: "When PACS is coupled with a change in departmental workflow, there can be a substantial and sustained improvement in reporting times and productivity."



[1] Picture archiving and communication systems lead to sustained improvements in reporting times and productivity: results of a 5-year audit
Clinical Radiology 2008; In press"