A member of staff reads values from a printout and copies them into the EHR. That costs time and asks for attention, certainly when several devices are in use. When you move to a new record, it is therefore worth looking at each device to see which information is available digitally.
What does a DICOM integration mean?
DICOM is a standard for exchanging medical images and the information that belongs with them. The standard describes a range of functions. A device that supports DICOM therefore does not automatically offer everything your clinic needs.
Ask which data the device can supply and what the EHR can do with them. An image or PDF in the record is something different from separate measured values that you can compare. The manufacturer describes the supported functions in a DICOM conformance statement. That information is a starting point for assessing and testing the integration.
Data have to end up with the right eye
For ophthalmic measurements it has to be clear which patient and which eye the data belong to. Discuss how the integration establishes that and what happens when information is missing. A member of staff must be able to see which data need checking before they are used.
Provenance matters as well. For a measured value the clinician wants to know which device produced it and at what moment. That helps in judging differences between measurements. So ask for a demonstration with the kinds of data you use yourself.
Do not only ask whether a device can be connected, but also which information is usable in the record afterwards.
A worklist helps to start the examination
With a suitable integration the device can request a digital worklist. The ophthalmic technician picks the patient and the planned examination from that list, instead of entering the details again. Checking the identity remains necessary. Discuss how changes and cancellations in the schedule become visible on the device.
What if a device does not support DICOM?
Some devices deliver a file or a printout instead of data through a standard interface. Start by taking stock of the output that is available. Sometimes another form of data transfer is possible. Sometimes a manual step remains necessary. Have the supplier assess this on the basis of the exact make, model and software version.
For suitable devices, aēyes develops an adapter that can read the available output. The values it takes over are offered for checking. Whether that is possible for your device has to be investigated and tested beforehand. An adapter is no general guarantee that every older device can be connected.
Seven questions for the supplier meeting
- Which images and measured values can our devices supply?
- How are the patient and the correct eye recognised, and what happens when data are missing?
- Do the device, the measurement method and the moment stay visible?
- Can the device use a worklist, and how are changes processed?
- Which options are there for devices that only deliver files or printouts?
- What do the setup and the management cost, and who helps when something fails?
- How can we export the data if we move to another system later?
Record the answers in the agreements about the move. Then test the integration with recognisable situations from daily practice, including a change, a missing value and a measurement that is carried out again.
How we prepare this with you
At aēyes we go through the list of devices and your way of working together. We already work with Pentacam, MS-39 and Zeiss FORUM, among others. We discuss which information the record needs, which integrations exist and what still has to be developed. Checking by the team and support when something fails belong to that preparation as well.
New clinics are expected to start in 2027. With the practice scan you map out in advance how you process measurement data today and which external integrations you need. That outcome is the starting point for the conversation.